Pandora: Genesis
by Tisrusewa Karyu
Summary: The universe is full of sentient life, most of which will destroy you given the chance. To survive, you must give less advanced species the opportunity to demonstrate their intentions, and deal with them accordingly. Irayo.
1. Chapter 1: Transfer

**Pandora: Genesis**

I gratefully acknowledge one of the foremost creative geniuses of our times, James Cameron, for conceiving the lush moon Pandora and the "noble savages," the Na'vi, that inhabit it. This story uses the setting he created for his movie, Avatar. I have not received any money for my work based on Avatar. If I could get paid by the hour for these stories, I would retire and spend all my time dancing and writing in comfort.

This story contains all original characters and situations, giving my thoughts on how the moon Pandora became the home of the Na'vi as seen in the movie.

Sorry for the darkness of this first chapter. The light is always brighter when coming out of the dark. Technological advancement has little correlation with social advancement.

In case you don't get it, "medsen" is medical sensor, "percom" is personal communicator, like a very fancy cell phone, "stat" is short for status report, "medbay" is medical bay, the hospital in the military space station, "decon" is short for decontamination, and "deconed" is short for decontaminated.

**Chapter One: Transfer**

"Prisoner, present yourself for transport."

"Sir, thank you for coming. Please take me to the infirmary. The garbage I'm fed runs right through me. I haven't slept well since I got here, because I spend all my time on the toilet."

"You are being transported to another facility, not the infirmary. Hurry up, we have a schedule to meet. You're first on our list."

"Sir, please check my cell logs, you'll see I'm sick."

"This is not a hospital or a fancy hotel, this is a prison for condemned prisoners, the lowest scum. There are no medsens in the cells. Your record will be annotated. Wipe your butt. Leave your clothes in the cell, you won't need them anymore."

"Sir, I need to wear something, I'm so cold now."

"Quit stalling, and assume the position, naked. Do you want us to come in there and make you hurt really, really bad because you tripped?"

"No, Sir. Sorry, Sir. Right away, Sir." The prisoner pulls off his shirt as he stands up, steps out of his pants, shuffles across the dank and smelly cell, stands with his back against the door, and puts his hands through the slot where food trays are passed.

"That's a good prisoner. Wish everyone was as polite as you." The guard fastens the handcuffs on the prisoner, and pushes the hands back inside the cell. He speaks into his percom. "Guard 2376 requesting the opening of cell 17-242. Doctor also requested, prisoner has severe diarrhea and may be too weak for transport. He looks very bad and is having trouble standing."

"Doctor is on the way. Even if this prisoner is dead, he must be transported. He's going to a military facility. They want him and they will have him, dead or alive; otherwise, we are all in big trouble. Put a diaper on the prisoner and immobilize him until the doctor arrives." The door slides open and stops with a loud clang. The guard who has not spoken pulls a diaper out of a wall cabinet and puts it on the naked prisoner. The two guards grab the arms of the prisoner and back him out of the cell, down the corridor, and into ankle stocks near the far wall.

"Sirs, please don't put me in these ankle stocks," the prisoner pleads. "If I pass out and fall over, I could break my legs or ankles." The prisoner has heard the screams of other prisoners injured that way in the short time he has been here, sometimes purposely caused by guards with scores to settle.

"Don't worry, prisoner. We'll fix you up so you can't get hurt. I was ordered to immobilize you, and I'll get into big trouble if I don't, especially with a doctor coming for you. My bosses will probably escort him here, so I can't be too careful. This is a lousy job, but at least it keeps food on my family's table, and a dump to keep the table and family in." The talkative guard holds the prisoner upright while the other guard wraps a chain from an overhead winch down one shoulder, through the armpit, across the chest, through the other armpit, and up the other shoulder, hooking the end to the chain above the prisoner's head. Since the prisoner's arms are still cuffed together behind his back, this simple wrap is sufficient. The quiet guard uses the winch control to take the slack out of the chain and hold the prisoner upright. "See, you can't fall over now, so your legs are safe and secure." The two guards step away a few paces and make smalltalk about their favorite sports teams while waiting for the doctor to arrive. The prisoner hangs from the chain, shivering, glad to have the diaper holding in a little heat.

Soon the doctor appears, pushing a cart of medicines and medical instruments, escorted by two uniformed guards, one pushing an empty gurney. When the doctor sees the prisoner chained upright, he explodes "What are you idiots doing? Trying to kill this man?"

The escorts, the commander of the guard force and the officer of the day, look at each other and laugh out loud together. The commander looks at the doctor and says "Come on, doc. That's really good. The prisoners in this place are dead already, it's just that their bodies have not caught up with their permanent records. Their income is zero. Their net worth is zero. Their credit score is zero. They have no percom account, so no videos, audios, images, texts, or net. They have no name, no family, no pets. They have no home address, other than this prison, and no hobbies or occupation, other than 'convicted subversive'. The only entry missing in their records is the date and time of death, and that really doesn't matter much, does it?"

The doctor looks down at the floor, sighs, and then looks up at his escorts. "Look, I know I'm here because I stole drugs to supplement my income, but that does not mean that my commitment to care for others has vanished with my personal dreams. This man looks really bad. He is certainly no threat to anyone. Even healthy, I doubt he could physically harm any of your guards. Get him down and on the gurney, and I'll do what I can to make him healthy enough to travel, or at least seem like we took good care of him before transferring him out of here."

The officer of the day answers "That's good, doc, because there's a high priority on this one. Don't know who he is or how he rated the high priority, and I don't want to know. That's way above my pay grade. Someone in the military has plans for him, and we must send him to that someone. So, fix him up good, doc, and keep us all out of trouble. Guards, get this man down and on the gurney in one piece, without any more accidents or injuries."

Both guards answer "Yes, Sir!" in unison. They remove the ankle stocks first, and ease the chain down, letting the prisoner slump onto the floor. Once the chain is removed, they pick the prisoner up and lay him down on the gurney. "Should we shackle him to the gurney?"

"No, doesn't look like that is necessary. He still has handcuffs on, that's good enough for now. There are many other prisoners scheduled to make the same trip as this one. Collect those prisoners now and get them into the mini-bus. Come back and get this guy last. We'll stay here with the doc. If we go to the infirmary, we'll let you know. Don't worry about being behind schedule, just get the others together as quickly as you can. I have already notified the military about the medical issue. They weren't happy, but they can't do anything except bitch until the prisoners are in their hands."

"Yes, Sir!" they both answer again in unison, and hurry off to the next transferee on the list.

The doctor goes to work on the prisoner. He starts an IV, and explains it to the prisoner. "I'm hooking you up to an IV with sugar water and other nutrients. This came out of the refrigerator just a few minutes ago. Normally, I would warm it up before dispensing it, but did not get the chance to do that. So, you will feel much better at first, but the cold will make you shiver even more as it infuses throughout your body." Just as the doctor explained, he feels really good, almost euphoric, as the nutrients course through his body and satisfy his hunger. He has not felt good like this since before his arrest months ago. Then, his shivering intensifies because his body needs to maintain its core temperature in spite of the cold IV fluid. The doctor covers him with the sheets that came on the gurney, and that helps somewhat. Next, the doctor explains the drug he is preparing. "I'm going to give you an injection of an anti-diarrheal drug into your IV. The best drugs for diarrhea are addictive, and they don't provide them to prisons. So, you are getting the best I have to give you. It works fairly well, but leaves a very metallic taste in your mouth, and no amount of water or other drinks will make the taste go away. So, you will taste it in a few minutes, and it will stay with you for hours." The doctor injects the medicine into the IV line, and just as predicted, the metallic taste soon arrives. It reminds the prisoner of the time when, as a boy, he stuffed his mouth full of metal ball bearings on a dare. However, no amount of swallowing makes this bad taste go away now.

The two high-level escorts lose interest in the proceedings, move several paces away, and begin discussing the latest game of a local sports franchise.

The doctor asks with a loud voice "Are you feeling any better now?"

The prisoner shakes his head in the affirmative, as his teeth are chattering with his shivers, and it seems that talking is too difficult.

The doctor leans over, and whispers "I wish you could speak, I'd really like to know what you did to get here only to be taken away by the military."

The prisoner stops his teeth chattering long enough to whisper weakly "I'm a middle manager at a tech firm, but my hobbies are history and anthropology, mainly primitive cultures. Somehow, I've been labeled a subversive and my life has been destroyed by the government. What the military wants with me, I don't know."

The doctor sat up, and again with a loud voice says "That bad taste will stay with you for hours. The shivering will stop once you warm up. Let me ask my escorts." Looking towards the escorts, the doctor asks "Could we go to the infirmary? A hot shower would really help my patient."

"Let me check the progress on the other transferees first." The commander turns around and talks on his percom. He turns back, and says "Half of the prisoners are on the mini-bus now. You will have only a few minutes. However, the infirmary is much closer to the mini-bus than we are here. If we really move fast, the prisoner can get some minutes to warm up."

"Thank you, commander. That is very considerate of you."

"Yeah, well, don't get used to it." The two escorts laugh as they grab the gurney and take off down the corridor. The doctor closes up his cart, and pushes it after them, running as fast as he can.

Within minutes, they arrive at the infirmary. The doctor hangs the IV bag on a portable stand, turns on the shower, takes off his clothes, helps the prisoner off the gurney, removes the diaper and throws it beside the toilet, and holds the prisoner up in the shower. Soon, the hot water revives the prisoner and stops his shivering. In silence, he drys off the prisoner, and then himself, with the escorts watching.

The doctor says "There's the toilet, go if you can. I will put a new diaper on you, because you may have a long trip ahead of you. Commander, is there an outfit for this prisoner to wear?"

"These transferees get jumpsuits as they board the mini-bus. Usually, the military makes them change as they leave the mini-bus, because we always get the jumpsuits back."

"Do you have a jumpsuit here the prisoner can put on now?"

"No. They are all down at the mini-bus."

"Would it be acceptable to wrap the prisoner in a sheet for the trip to the mini-bus?"

"Yeah, we've done more than plenty so far, so that is not too much more." The commander's percom cackles, and he turns to answer. After a few moments, he turns back. "Your timing is good, doc. The second to last prisoner is on the mini-bus now. They will be here within minutes to take your patient."

The prisoner gets up from the toilet, and the doctor wipes his butt and puts on a new diaper. The doctor washes his hands, and says loudly, "I'm going to tape the IV bag to your shoulder. Leave it in as long as you can, you need all the hydration and minerals you can get." The doctor tapes the bag to the prisoner, and then wraps a sheet from the gurney around him.

The prisoner looks to the doctor, bows toward him, and says "Thank you for your kind consideration and treatment. I feel I owe you my life. I hope the administration here will allow you to continue your good work." Looking to the commander and officer of the day, he says "Sirs, thank you for allowing the doctor to treat me. I am forever indebted to you, and have no way to repay you, except to say thank you again."

As the escorts nod in silent reply, the first two guards stride into the infirmary to pick up the prisoner. The commander says "This prisoner can wear the sheet until he changes into the jumpsuit. He has an IV bag taped to his shoulder. Make sure the military knows about that and the diaper when you get there. They will say they're contraband, but tell them they are medically necessary. The doc has got him in pretty good shape for traveling. Thanks for your work today, doc. You saved all our asses with the military. Well, let's get back to work." With that, the guards leave with the prisoner, and the commander and officer of the day return to their offices.

As the doctor is cleaning up, he finds a note in the first diaper, written on toilet paper from a cell. It looks like a net address, account name, and password. "Dumb bastard, probably doesn't know his cerebral implant has already reported him writing it down. This paper is a one-way ticket to hell. He wraps it in the dirty diaper and drops them into the biohazard recycling slot.

The prisoner is escorted to the mini-bus, with his legs unshackled and wrapped in the sheet, by the same two guards who escorted everyone else now sitting in place. The mini-bus is an ancient design, centuries old, but looks very new. Obviously, it has spent much time outside this universe. It consists of a thin metal plate, sitting flat on the ground, with two large padded seats facing inward on one end, and thirty-two rows of four bare-metal seats each facing the other way. An aisle runs down the center for its full length. Only one bare-metal seat in the front row remains empty, along with the two padded seats. Unlike consumer vehicles, there are no walls, windows, or top. Just a plain, military style vehicle for moving small numbers of personnel without weapons or belongings, sitting on a plain concrete pad.

His status is immediately noticed by the occupants, as he is the only prisoner arriving at the mini-bus who is not naked and not wearing leg shackles. He stops at the table along the side of the bus where the quiet guard removes and folds up the sheet, and helps him into a jumpsuit. The occupants also see the IV bag while he is uncovered. The guard then puts on the leg shackles, and leads him to his seat. He is very glad that he is last. He recognizes several occupants, even considers some to be friends and acquaintances through his social net, but tries to avoid making eye contact and giving off any signs of recognition. They may all be convicted subversives condemned to death for their crimes, real or imagined, but it is never wise to give away any information around the government. The guard locks the shackles into the seat, so the prisoner can barely move. The talkative guard picks up a slender plastic wand from the table, and walks down the center aisle, waving the wand over each head until the wand buzzes confirmation that the prisoner's ID number has been read the from the cerebral implant embedded deep within the brain. When he finishes, his percom beeps with a text message saying all prisoners identified are cleared for transport to the same military compound that is the destination of the mini-bus. He tosses the wand back onto the table, and he and the quiet guard take their places in the padded seats. He calls the prison control center, who connects him with the military control center. They verify that the destination pad is clear, and initiate the jump. The military controls all bubble generators, and keeps them in secure facilities, so no terrorists, criminals, or subversives can use them. Even consumer vehicles are controlled by the military, which has made this mode of travel extremely secure.

In a very brief fraction of a second, a silver bubble forms around the mini-bus and then disappears. A blink is much longer, so some passengers miss the bubble completely. While the bubble exists, the mass within it, in this case, the mini-bus, its 130 passengers, and the incidental atmosphere, is removed from the "normal" universe. At the same time that it disappears from the prison, it appears in the military compound. The distance traveled does not matter; it takes no time to move across a parking lot, across a continent, or across galaxies. All transfers use no time, and no time passes within the bubble. The bubble can be made to transfer instantaneously back into the normal universe, or appear after delaying for any period of time. That is why the mini-bus looks new; when it is no longer needed, it is "parked" outside the normal universe until its next scheduled use, and does not age no matter how long it is "parked". The military stores much of its materiel outside the normal universe, keeping it beyond the reach of time, friend, and foe alike. The only requirement is keeping the destination point empty at the appointed time, because the transferred mass will "merge" with anything in its way when the bubble dissipates. Most military facilities have large open areas, marked out in a grid, used just for "sending" and "receiving" bubbles of materiel. These grids are kept meticulously free of objects, just in case a forgotten bubble makes an appearance.

The mini-bus appears in the military compound at its assigned coordinates. Its pad is surrounded by thick, blast-proof walls. Heavily armed soldiers run out and surround the vehicle. The two guards both give hand signals, and wait until the squad leader acknowledges them. Once the squad leader gives the all-clear signal, an officer and two medics walk towards the two guards, who stand up. The officer steps between the two guards, faces toward the prisoners, and addresses them in a strong, loud voice. "Welcome to the rest of your life. Your old life is over, so forget who or what you were. You are all condemned prisoners awaiting execution. I could shoot you all now, and that would be perfectly legal. You will be recycled when you no longer have any value to the government. You are here because someone in the government believes you can still do something useful. When your usefulness is over, so are you. So, do what you are told, follow the rules, be productive, and you will live longer, such as it is."

The officer turns towards the guards. "Who is the medical case that delayed you?"

"Here, sir. He is wearing a diaper and has an IV bag taped to his right shoulder. We know they're contraband, but we were told they're medically necessary."

"I'm sure they are. Medics, check him out, and dispose of that diaper and IV."

One medic opens the jumpsuit, and pulls the IV bag off of the prisoner's shoulder. She squeezes the last of the fluid out of the almost empty bag, and says "Good, it's empty, so there's no question about removing it. I'll take out the needle now." She pulls the jumpsuit down to expose the needle that is securely taped to the upper arm. She peels up a corner of the tape, and rips it free with one hand, pulling the needle out with it. With the other hand, she sprays the area around the wound, stopping the bleeding with a spray-on bandage.

The other medic waves an instrument, a comprehensive medsen, down the body of the prisoner, from head to toe. His percom rings, and displays a text from the instrument. "Damn, this prisoner has a stat longer than the daily sports report. He's ambulatory, but he'll need a full work-up at his destination, if they have budgeted that for him."

The officer pulls out his percom, pushes some buttons, and says "He's a high priority, so they'll find the money. Send his stat to his file, and let them do the work. We've got to get these prisoners out of here to clear this pad."

Turning to the guards, the officer commands "Unlock this prisoner first, and then do the rest in the usual order." He faces the prisoners again. "You will be unshackled. You will stand up, take your jumpsuit off, and lay it over your seat. Remain standing quietly in front of your seat until escorted. Do not try to say anything to anybody. You will be shot and recycled if you do not comply. Yes, we shoot first and ask questions later. No, we do not have the budget to patch you up after we shoot you, so into the recycler you will go, dead or alive."

The medics help the prisoner out of the jumpsuit and remove the diaper, putting it into the biohazard bag with the spent IV. They escort the naked prisoner off the mini-bus. His arms are numb from being handcuffed behind his back, but feeling is returning now that his arms are free. Again, he is glad he is first off, as he does not want to recognize anyone else. He is feeling better now, the best since his arrest. The medics take him down a long hallway, through double doors labeled "Do Not Enter", and into a room lined with racks of pressure suits. They find one his size, and help him into it. They lock a helmet with no window over his head. They put him into a very small room and close the door. The room is so small, and the fit is so tight, he cannot raise his arms. He feels the temperature rise quickly with a loud roar, feeling like he is standing in a furnace. The roar subsides, and the temperature drops quickly below freezing. The temperature rises again, and he feels light. He realizes he is weightless, and his helmet bumps into the ceiling of the room. His arms are now free to move around, as if the room suddenly became larger. Moments later, he feels hands pulling him along. He flails blindly, until the hands stop him. The hands work on his helmet, and remove it from his suit.

"Prisoner, you are now in a micro-gravity environment. Have you ever been in space before?"

"No, sir. May I ask where?" he asks the man with him, also in a full pressure suit, but with a clear helmet.

"This place is a military outpost. It has a number, but that won't mean anything to you. This is our main facility in this galaxy, on the other side of the cluster from our home galaxy. I see you have medical issues, so you are going to our medbay after you get out of this pressure suit and go through decontamination. You were bubbled out here after being deconed on the outside, now you have to be deconed on the inside.

"Was I time lagged?"

"No, you got here when you left your planet. Now get out of that suit. Others are waiting to use this receiving chamber."

The prisoner struggles out of the suit with the help of the other man, who stows the suit and helmet behind one panel, and then floats the prisoner against a wall.

"Try to calm yourself. Do not move any muscles, other than breathing. That's good. I will secure you to this surface, give you an injection to knock you out, and put you into decon." The other man pulls some straps over the prisoner to hold him against the wall panel, and then administers the injection. In his weakened condition, the prisoner quickly falls asleep. The other man detaches the panel from the wall, and floats the prisoner out of the chamber. He guides the panel with the prisoner through a slot into the decon unit, and shuts the door once the panel is completely inside. He floats across the chamber, puts another panel on the wall, exits through yet another panel, and gives the all-clear to decon the chamber to ready it for the next arriving bubble.


	2. Chapter 2: Awakenings

**Pandora: Genesis**

I gratefully acknowledge one of the foremost creative geniuses of our times, James Cameron, for conceiving the lush moon Pandora and the "noble savages," the Na'vi, that inhabit it. This story uses the setting he created for his movie, Avatar. I have not received any money for my work based on Avatar. If I could get paid by the hour for these stories, I would retire and spend all my time dancing and writing in comfort.

This story contains all original characters and situations, giving my thoughts on how the moon Pandora became the home of the Na'vi as seen in the movie.

In case you don't get it, "medtech" is medical technician, "medsen" is medical sensor, "percom" is personal communicator, like a very fancy cell phone, "stat" is short for status report, "medbay" is medical bay, the hospital in the military space station, "decon" is short for decontamination, and "deconed" is short for decontaminated.

**Chapter Two: Awakenings**

"Oh... I hurt everywhere..." He feels his weight on his back and legs, so he's out of the microgravity environment. He is not lying flat on his back in a bed, but is reclining back in a hard chair with his butt unsupported and hanging out the bottom. This position makes it hard to judge just how much gravity there is. He feels naked, but at least he is covered by a sheet, and seems warm all over.

"Good. It's about time you wake up and get your ass out of here. You've been way too much trouble. First one in and last one out."

"Where am I?"

"You're in decon medbay."

"How long have I been here?"

"Almost three days."

"Three days!"

"That's station time, don't know how that compares to where you came from, or where you're going. Most of our visitors are here for about a day."

His arms are clamped down, and he cannot reach his eyes that are crusted shut and covered by bandages. His legs also are clamped down. He twists his body slowly, until he feels pains in his penis and anus.

"Don't move! Your tubes will come out."

"Sorry. Won't do that again."

"Hurts you more than it hurts me."

"Why have I been here so long?"

"Your decon was delayed because of the anti-diarrheal drug you got before you left prison, and once you got through decon, we had to do a special work-up on you. The medics that checked you out put the request in your file. When you start eating again, you'll need a special diet, otherwise you're healthy enough for your new life. It's all in your stat. Ask the med staff at your destination."

"Yes, that metallic taste is gone, but it was better than the taste I have now."

"You've been deconed. We clean out your insides, end to end, and also all the other openings into your body. Your entire outside is also cleaned; you have no hair anywhere and your skin is lightly burned everywhere."

"That's why I hurt all over." He remembers the time when, as a child, he got sun-burned so bad he developed blisters all over his head, arms, and torso. His skin feels tight now, just as it did when those blisters popped many years ago. This is far worse, as there is no skin that is untouched.

"Yeah, you'll have to use the healing skin cream at your unit until your skin heals. Let me finish the stat for the last patient, then I'll work on you." The medtech's percom buzzes, and he walks away as he answers.

While waiting for the medtech, he wonders what his "unit" might be. The medtech did not say cell or pen, so maybe life would not so grim here in space. However, living volume is always at a premium in space, and maybe his unit is tiny compared to his last cell. He wants to ask, but cannot hear anyone around him. He dozes off waiting.

He awakes when he feels gloved hands on the sides of his head. "Decon flushed out your eyes and sucked out your tears. The bright lights in here will hurt your eyes, but you'll have to open them for me to work on them." The medtech removes the bandages, and the light is blinding, even with his eyelids closed. He could feel something being sprayed on his eyelids, and the medtech daubing them with tissues. "Now open one of your eyes so I can put these drops in."

He opens his left eye, and says "There's gravity here, unlike the place where I arrived." He is surprised to see the medtech in a full isolation suit.

"No gravity, just feels like it. All inter-galactic transfers, cargo and passengers, go through the quarantine bays. No gravity makes it easier to move stuff around. Now, open the other eye. Most people can't function well in weightlessness, so the isolation wards for decon are in a rotating ring around one end of the bays. That rotation is what you feel. Only one ward in the ring does more than basic decon, and it's called decon medbay. That's where we are now. There is a separate medbay for the residents of this outpost, but that's far from here, in one of the residential structures. I'm putting pads on your eyes again, and holding them with this wrap. Keep it on until told to take it off at your unit."

"You said the skin cream is also in my 'unit'. Is that nearby?"

The medtech laughs. "Your 'unit' is somewhere in this galaxy, and surely is not in this outpost. You'll have the skin cream dispensed when you arrive. Hundreds go through here every day on their way to the colonies or other military outposts. If you were staying in this space outpost, you would have gone through a different decon protocol. The decon you went through is much more thorough, to protect the worlds being colonized." The medtech picks up a medsen wand and scans him from head to toe. His percom buzzes and displays the results. "You are good to go. I'll take your tubes out now." The medtech silently removes the IV needle and puts a spray-on bandage over the wound. "Don't move, your butt is next." Before the medtech finishes saying these words, he slides the anal tube out quickly. "Last, the catheter. Don't move." He slides this tube out carefully. "There's a little blood on it. It'll sting the first couple of times you relieve yourself. See the med staff at your unit right away if you have more problems than that, or develop a fever. I'm releasing your arms and giving you fortified fruit juice to drink down. Should make your mouth taste better. You'll be leaving here in a few minutes, and need to drink it before you go."

"Thanks. I need to move because I'm getting cramps. Got anything stronger to drink?"

The medtech laughs again. "Not here. You should wait a few days, a stiff drink will put you down." He releases the arms. "You can move, just don't try to stand up yet. Put your hands out, and I'll give you the cup."

He takes the cup, and tries a small sip. It is stronger tasting than what he expects, but he takes a mouthful and swishes around. Once the fruit juice cuts through the chemical taste in his mouth, it tastes better than any other juice he could remember. He hears the medtech's percom ring again.

"Yes. The prisoner is almost ready to transport now. He's finishing up his drink. Will do. Bye."

He gulps down the last of the juice, and holds the cup out.

The medtech takes the cup, grabs the sheet, and says "Time for you to go. They're getting anxious to send you, you really are the last one left in the batch for your colony. I'll release your legs and then help you up. You've been in this position for too long, and you will get dizzy."

The medtech throws the cup and sheet on the floor, releases his legs, helps him up, and they slowly walk out of the isolation booth and down a hall. Once again, he is on the move with no possessions, not even clothes. They shuffle into another room. The medtech turns him around, and backs him onto a raised platform. "Lie down on this bench, flat on your back. Good luck, buddy, wherever you end up." When he gets into position, the medtech releases him, and makes a call on his percom.

"The prisoner is in place in transport room two inside the decon medbay. His stat will follow in a few minutes. I'm heading out now." He could hear a door close, followed by the sound of rushing air. Moments later, the lights dim, the noise stops, and the air smells fresher, and is much warmer and wetter. The smooth, hard bench he was lying on is no longer beneath him, and now he is lying on a large concrete pad that feels hot and rough.

He hears a woman's voice call out. "Don't move. Wait until we get to you, and then we'll help you up. Keep your blindfold on." Moments later, he hears the woman and another person walk up, and the squeaks of a wheeled vehicle. "He'll help you get up and into this wheelchair." He feels very large, strong hands grab his arms and help him up onto his feet. He sits down onto the wheelchair when it bumps into the back of his legs. He feels a sheet covering his legs and lap. "Now, I'm going to hand you a large bowl with a clear hot broth. After decon, we need to start you system again, and this will help."

"I've been told I will need a special diet. Has my stat caught up with me yet?"

"No, but this broth is always the start, regardless of your dietary needs. I'll look for your stat when I get back to my office. You have to drink this broth now, before we drop you off at your first stop here."

"I could really use that healing skin cream as soon as possible."

"You will get that at your second stop."

"Where are we?"

"No more questions, for now. Once you join the others, there will be an introductory meeting that should answer most of your questions. Right now, rule number one is no more questions, rule number two is keep your blindfold on, rule number three is to finish that broth, and rule number four, do what you are told, even though what you are experiencing may seem very strange."

He nods, and sips down the hot broth as fast as he dares. They push him along in silence. The broth is very tasty, but he cannot identify the ingredients. It has a very soothing quality, relaxing him as it satisfies his hunger. He wishes he could see his surroundings. Clearly, he "landed" on a pad used for transferring cargo bubbles. That means this destination has little passenger traffic, and is consistent with what the medtech said, he is at a colony of some sort. His imagination is running wild, especially with the idea that there will be strange experiences here. He finishes off the broth, and finds himself dozing off again.

"Wake up, we are at your first stop." The bowl and sheet are removed from his lap. There is little light coming in around the pads over his eyes, but that light has a soothing quality, soft white with a purplish hue. The huge, strong hands are lifting him up. "We are going to help you out of the chair. You are to lie down on the ground, flat on your back. It is bumpy, and may be uncomfortable at first." The wheelchair moves out of the way, and the big hands ease him down onto the ground, naked and flat on his back again. "Do not move. Fall asleep as fast as you can. Do not remove your blindfold until told to do so. You will feel some plants touching your skin. Do not move them or try to brush them away. When you wake up, you will be covered with plants. Do not move. Wait for someone to help you up. Do you understand?"

"Yes. Don't move. Don't remove my blindfold. Ignore the plants."

"That's really good. Now be sure you do those things. We'll be watching you to make sure. Have a good sleep."

"Thanks. Good night." He falls asleep almost immediately, in spite of the hard soil poking his painful skin. The broth must have had additives that help numb the pain and knock him out. He never feels any plants, but did notice that the soft light went from a purplish hue to a greenish hue. All that he remembers is one amazing dream. Everything in his life, unusual and mundane, significant and trivial, embarrassing and fulfilling, goes through his head. He wonders if he is dying, since his entire life is passing before him. Most events were long forgotten, but tonight they are all remembered. Dry facts, mostly learned in a school setting, zip by too quickly to recognize. He remembers someone saying that education is what is left after you have forgotten the details. His dream relives his entire education, and all the details come pouring through in an instant like a tsunami. Strong emotions, though, play out more slowly and create emotional turmoil once again. Several times he wants to wake up and escape the turmoil, but he is a spectator in this theater of his mind, stuck in his seat, and cannot control what is on stage. His sexual experiences really affect him, as he realizes that he would never see these lovers, especially his wife, ever again. His recent experiences, his arrest and conviction as a subversive, also hit him hard. He still cannot understand how his life was criminal, and warrants him being ripped from his family and his productive and seemingly normal life. Just as it seems that severe depression would be the only outcome from this dream, many good experiences are replayed. Soon, he is feeling very happy, and sees his current situation as an opportunity for more happiness.

The amazingly realistic dream stops, leaving him very optimistic and energetic, and he begins to wake up. The soft purple and green lights are replaced by a harsher yellow-white light. When he tries to move, he feels like he is tied down to the ground by thousands of threads. Rather than slick fibers, the threads feel squeaky, made of some plant material he has never felt before. He hears a male voice above him. "Good morning, hope you had a good sleep. Lie still and I'll cut you out of those filaments."


	3. Chapter 3: Recruitments

**Pandora: Genesis**

I gratefully acknowledge one of the foremost creative geniuses of our times, James Cameron, for conceiving the lush moon Pandora and the "noble savages," the Na'vi, that inhabit it. This story uses the setting he created for his movie, Avatar. I have not received any money for my work based on Avatar. If I could get paid by the hour for these stories, I would retire and spend all my time dancing and writing in comfort.

This story contains all original characters and situations, giving my thoughts on how the moon Pandora became the home of the Na'vi as seen in the movie.

**Chapter Three: Recruitments**

He awakes from his incredibly realistic dream that replayed every detail of his life, and hears a male voice above him. "Good morning, hope you had a good sleep. Lie still and I'll cut you out of those filaments."

"I'd like to see what is holding me down. May I remove my blindfold?"

"No. You will see the filaments soon enough. The decontamination process is hard on eyes, and you must wear your blindfold until your eyes have healed properly. The sun is bright this morning, even inside our domes, so you will hurt your eyes if you remove your blindfold now. Your eyes must be good enough to see the introductory meeting. It has been delayed until you are ready. Putting it off another time because you hurt yourself by removing your blindfold early will only make the other settlers even more unhappy with you. They all had to wear blindfolds after their arrivals, and some still are wearing theirs. You must do your part and get your eyesight back as soon as possible, so we can all move forward together." By the time the speaker finishes saying no, he has the filaments cut away. "I have a wheelchair for you, and I will help you into it."

"Do you have some clothes for me? I've been naked for four days and really need something to wear."

"You will be getting clothing and food, but that will be after you visit the clinic in the medical facility, and we have a bit of a journey to get there."

"Could I walk behind and push the wheelchair myself? I really need the exercise."

"Unfortunately, there are no straight stretches between here and the medical facility. Most of the way is narrow and is twisty or curves continuously. We are traveling in the narrow spaces between nested domes now. When you regain your eyesight, you will better understand this place."

"Sounds good. You can push me. I am very hungry, so maybe I wouldn't get too far walking. But I do need to stretch my legs. I've been sleeping almost non-stop for four days, and feel really stiff. Sorry. I haven't introduced myself. My name is ..."

"No names. I think I know yours, but I will not use it. All new settlers will be assigned temporary names at our introductory meeting. For now, I'll call you settler."

"What should I call you?"

"Call me Sempul. The emphasis is on the first syllable."

"On the way here, I recognized a few of the other prisoners. What should I call them?"

"Everyone has been told, do not use old names. Some settlers are unhappy with the no name rule, but the reason for it will become clear. You will call each other by your new names, once they are assigned at the introductory meeting." He helps the settler up and gets him into the wheelchair. They start their trek slowly. "I am intrigued by you. Did you know you made the subversive watch list during your third year of school? As soon as you could read, you chose dangerous reading material. All settlers we get are convicted subversives, like yourself. Most subversives never fit into society, or have few useful skills, and usually are hard to work with. You had a responsible job, a middle manager, and apparently have good communications skills. My hope is that you have the skills I need to help me organize the settlers."

"What percentage are you using for M. R.?"

"Huh?"

"Your management reserve. What percentage are you using?"

"Does that matter?"

"If you said five percent, that tells me you have done this many times before, and you are running a low risk effort. If you said twenty or twenty-five percent, that says this is a high risk effort, and probably has never been done before. Ten to fifteen percent is typical, meaning that you are running a normal project and expecting a normal level of risk. Since you don't know what the term management reserve means, I take it you don't have a budget or schedule to meet. You probably don't know what earned value does for you, or what your cost and schedule performance indexes could tell you."

"You're right, I have no budget or schedule. Someone above me worries about them. M. R., by your explanation, maybe fifty percent is good for this project. I have been given facilities and supplies, mainly food, for the settlers until they become self-sufficient. Everything else is at my discretion. Which is good, because your late arrival would already have me behind schedule."

"Have you done this before?"

"Yes and no. I have helped make settlements on other worlds, but this is my first time being in charge. That is why I'm hoping you will help me. You have run projects before, and know how to direct and motivate people. The military really doesn't care how a settlement works out. They will periodically check on it. If the group disappears, they will start another settlement somewhere else on the same world. Maybe they will send an investigative team to see what went wrong with the old group. If the group thrives, they will file a report saying that the group is still in existence, and schedule the next check."

"Can you get more food or medical supplies?"

"Yes for food. The Biology group provides the medical staff and facilities, and they handle all medical supplies and their own food. We are separate from them, but we share facilities here. They have been working on this world for thousands of years, off and on."

"Do you have to ration the food?"

"No. The food supplies only last for about ten days, and then we get another shipment."

"So, we have to hope the shipments keep coming. Should save back a little that can be saved in case a shipment is late. You should ask how long the shipments are scheduled, so you know our planned 'drop dead' date."

"Oh, I never thought of that. One of my staffers handles all logistics, and I'll talk to her when we get back."

"Now that new settlers are arriving, are the shipments going to get larger?"

"I think so. I'll ask her."

"Is there anything edible outside?"

"No, we cannot eat any of the plants or animals. Too much heavy metals and other poisonous substances in them."

"So, we are completely dependent on the folks who are sending us food now. You haven't mentioned any security forces to feed. Guess you have a large force, since your new settlers are all convicted subversives who would rather be home right now."

"There are no security forces here. There are no bubble generators or controllers here, so no one can go home. If you want to get off planet, you must convince the military at the outpost you came from to bubble you back. That will not happen."

"What if the convicts run off or take over?"

"The atmosphere outside our domes is poisonous. Even the largest domes in this complex have poisonous air so the Biology group can work on local plants and animals. None of us can last in it for more than a few minutes. You'll find out someday, we all have a mandatory training class for dome leaks. If the convicts take over, that does not matter. They are the settlers. If they take over, chances are they will not survive long. If they do, that's fine. Either way, end of problem."

"What if you or your staff are held hostage?"

"There will be no negotiations. The military will just wait and see what happens."

"You and your staffers are very gutsy. How can we settle this world if we cannot live in it?"

"Good question. I should not tell you before the introductory meeting, but since I need your help, I will confide in you. Don't tell anyone until I announce it to the group. Each settler will be modified by the Biology group to live here. The details are still being worked out."

"What! Everything else has been taken from me, and now you're changing my body, too. You will have a revolt on your hands when this comes out."

"Sorry, that is how it is done. This policy dates back to the early times of the Great Awakening. Your reaction is typical. The advantage is that each settler is getting a better body, and your medical problems are fixed. You know, you were rated minimally viable when you were born. One point less and your recycling would have been mandatory. Your parents were allowed to recycle you and try again, but they refused and kept you. Your medical record is very long, so they did not do you any favors by keeping you alive. And then you became a subversive, after all that medical care. You leave that all behind when you are able to live outside, in the village in the jungle."

"You know that some people will not be able to handle this."

"Starting up settlements this way has been done for two million years. Yes, there will be some settlers that will kill themselves, or emotionally withdraw from life. Nothing can stop that. What does help greatly is having some settlers accepting this situation and talking others through the shock. I have recruited others, and I hope you will also help me with this."

"Who is going to talk me through the shock?"

"I am, right now. But I will be very blunt. Most of the specific memories from your previous life will be deleted in the process. You will not remember your old wife or kids, but you get the chance to take a new wife and make new kids."

"You erase my memories?"

"Yes, and you get to make more memories in return. What is the alternative? Death? That is no alternative. Yes, things did not work out the way you wanted in this life, but the next life is a clean slate. No cerebral implant to report your every outlawed thought. No percom to track everywhere you go and everything you do. You get to live in a primitive culture, something you have always wanted to do. You get to start a new civilization, with other low technology hunters and gatherers. Every day is a fight to live or die. You versus the smartest and nastiest beasts ever to inhabit a world with a sentient species."

"I see that I have little choice. Actually, none of us prisoners have much choice. We've been put in a prison without bars. If we are to have a life here, we have to make it ourselves." He hangs his head, pauses briefly, and then looks into Sempul's eyes, and speaks strongly. "Sempul, I will not agree with you all the time, but I will do whatever I can to make this settlement a success." Another pause, longer this time, looking down, speaking softly. "I just need some time to get over what I have lost. I always thought I could appeal the judgment against me, and get my life back. Now I am in a different galaxy, with no hope of returning home, naked with no possessions, facing the loss of some of my body parts and my memories."

"You will get lots of time to grieve your old life. My wife is a counselor, and she will work with all settlers to make this transition. You have already taken a big step forward, and my wife and I are here to help you. All I ask is that you lead by example. We have much to learn and do to make a new civilization on this world. There will be settlers that will fight every step, or do not do their part. If you do your part and help them understand that they must do their part, there is a chance that this attempt will succeed. By the way, you are part of the third attempt to settle this world."

"Really. Did you work either of the first two attempts?"

"Yes, I was a staffer here during the last attempt. Got into trouble right away because I argued against the plan. The military always wants the smallest number of settlers set up as quickly as possible. When I took this assignment to run the third attempt, I made them agree to a much larger settlement, and also building it up in a staggered manner over many years. Just what I suggested for the second try. There are many good reasons for this approach that we'll discuss someday. I left thinking maybe I was wrong and the second try was going to make it, but I filed my objections just in case. I was on another world helping start another settlement when I got the message that the military made a rescue mission here, and had a few survivors. Some begged the military to shoot them because they lost mates and living without them is so hard. One male killed himself, and one female willed herself to death. A couple more adults walked into the jungle, and have not returned after half a year. Losing a mate for them is much harder than for us."

"That's hard to believe."

"Just wait, you'll see what I'm talking about after you're mated. Some survivors are still recovering. You'll meet them later."

"They're living here?"

"Actually, the wall to our right is their dome. It is also filled with poisonous air from the outside. They can breathe our air for short periods. It smells bad to them, but not as bad as their air smells to us."

"It seems I have much to learn."

"All settlers have much to learn. I need you to learn fast, and help the others as best you can. Hold on, I need to open the airlock into the Habitation dome, and get us through it." He turns the wheelchair around and stops. The airlock door immediately opens, as no one has used it since he entered earlier to get this settler. He pushes the wheelchair into the airlock, and hits the button to cycle the system. This airlock is not necessary in that breathable air is on both sides of it, but it is a safety measure in case the poisonous air leaks into the dome on either side. The other airlock door swings open into the Habitation dome. He pushes the wheelchair out of the airlock, and turns left, closing the airlock door behind them. Instead of entering any structure in the dome, they skirt against the inside wall of the dome until they come to another airlock door. "I also have much to learn, and I will be asking all settlers to volunteer what they know. I had some say over who was sent here, so I picked those that could help the most."

"I heard the guards say I was a high priority case. That was your doing?"

"Yes, I needed your skills, and saw you got into trouble with your interest in ancient civilizations. And thank you for agreeing to help me so quickly. I really need all the help I can get to make this settlement and keep it alive. Now, here is the medical facility. Let's see if anyone is inside." He reaches out and presses a large red button marked "Push for medical assistance" that is where the airlock control panel should be.

After a few moments, a woman's voice answers "Yes, who's there?" The voice seems the same as the voice he heard right after he arrived on the cargo pad last night.

"Sempul here with the last settler. You took him to the tree last night."

"Is it an emergency?"

"No, he needs his eyes checked."

"And the skin cream and special food and some clothes, please."

"I'm in the Zoology dome, I'll be there in a few minutes. I can do the eyes and skin cream, but not the food and clothes. You'll get those soon after I'm done with you. Sempul or his staff will handle those. Don't go away, I'll be there shortly."

"Thank you. We'll be right here, waiting."

"She had a helper last night, a man with the biggest hands I've encountered. Where is he?"

"You saw him?"

"No, he helped me up from the bubble pad, and helped me down on the ground before I passed out. His hands covered most of my upper arms. I didn't see or feel a tree. Are those filaments from a tree?"

"You are very observant, even while blind. He is one of the survivors, and lost his pregnant mate. Very sad case. Hardly speaks. The doctor has adopted him for now, because he was the only survivor left that has some training as a healer. Actually, his mate was the clan's healer,and he learned a little from her. He patched up the injured the best he could, but the rescue team had no specific training or supplies for them. He does not speak our language and couldn't work with the rescuers, so many of the injured he helped were lost. He still holds that against us. The doctor was yanked out of her new assignment and sent here, and healed the injured that were still alive when she got here. She also knows some of the language, and that helped as much as her medical skills. I have a linguist on my staff that will be teaching the language to all of us, including me and my wife. That takes a long explanation. And, yes, the tree made the filaments. That is another, even longer, explanation. Please, don't let the others know until I tell them."

"I understand. After lying down on the ground last night, I do remember seeing a very soothing light. Had a purplish hue at first, and then turned greenish as I fell asleep."

"That is the brain tree, all right. Or, I should say, the sacred tree. It is an amazing technology made by our Biology group, and is too beautiful for words. Some nights, my wife and I sit in the narrow sliver between the domes, basking in its light. It oozes love. Guess that is why it is called a sacred tree."

"I can't wait to get out of these bandages and see it for myself. So how many days will this introductory meeting take?"

Sempul laughs. "Once everyone is ready, I will start it, and go on as long as I can. We will meet daily for as long as it takes. It may take years."

"We don't have that much time, do we?"

Before Sempul can answer, the airlock door opens, and the doctor's voice says "Come on in, the waiting room is empty." She laughs as Sempul pushes the wheelchair into the airlock. After it cycles, she opens the door, waits for them to exit the airlock, shuts the door, runs in front of them, and says "Follow me to the examination room. What do you think of our cozy place, so far, settler?"

"I haven't been awake long enough to tell."

Sempul interrupts with "Don't let him fool you, doctor. He figured out that you had a survivor with you last night when you met him on the pad, and saw the purple and green light from the sacred tree. He has agreed to help us get the settlement going, and help organize the other settlers. I have told him far more than what I intended for this first meeting, and he has been handling it very well."

The doctor gives Sempul a surprised look, and says "Finally, a positive surprise on this moon. I'll dim the lights, and then take off this blindfold. Let's see how your eyes are doing." She slips off the wrap, and removes the pads. Even in the dim light, his eyes are slow to focus, but he makes out the face of the doctor. She is dressed conventionally for a doctor, in a spotless white robe. She looks very young and professional. Sempul is behind him, out of sight. She picks up a small light and turns it on. "I'm going to look into your eyes now, and this will hurt some. Try keeping your eyelids open for me." He keeps his eyes open as best he can, as his eyes feel more tired than painful. "I'm going to put some drops in, so bend your head back as far as you can." He slides forward in the wheelchair, and bends his head back. "That's good. Hold your left eye open, and look at the bottle." She squeezes two drops in that eye. "Now blink fast several times to work the drops in. That's good. Now, the right eye." She squeezes two drops in, and he blinks again. "That's good. Here is a tissue to wipe off the excess. Don't put the tissue in your eyes, let the excess run out on its own. That's good." I'm putting new pads on your eyes, and wrapping them up again. Keep your blindfold on until midday. Take it off only when you are in shade this afternoon. You shouldn't need it tomorrow, unless you get into bright sunlight."

"Do you have any sunglasses I could use?"

"Sempul, you want to field that?"

"Another very long story that I must give to everyone soon. Basically, can't have any artifacts that can get lost outside the domes. So, no eyeglasses or sunglasses, because the glass or plastic can last forever and be found by someone who shouldn't find it."

"We settlers know about many objects and materials. How do you keep us from making them?"

"You will understand better after the introductory meeting."

"I think you just added several more days."

All three laugh. Clearly, the doctor understands the magnitude of the knowledge that Sempul must pass on to the settlers. She says "If he is in your confidence, maybe he can help with the settler in the psych cell, or the problem we have with the wildlife."

Sempul answers "I did not want to overburden him. He just got here. But you are right, we need her at the introductory meeting also. Let me log into a terminal here to check if this settler has a connection with her. I miss my percom. Has she calmed down?"

"I hope she has. I did not think it was possible, but she sat on the bed in a fetal position and cried all day yesterday. The decon folks sucked all of her tears out, but she was able to cry all day."

The settler asks "What happened?"

The doctor replies "My helper Wängra, the survivor, was with me yesterday when we went to cut her out of the filaments and bring her here. As I was cutting the filaments, she took her blindfold off and saw him. It was before dawn, and there was little light, mostly that soft purple light given off by the sacred tree. She screamed, yelling something about a blue demon. He picked her up, held her head against his breast so she couldn't see anything else, and ran her in here. He dropped her off on the bed in the dark, and ran out. I tried to calm her, but she was inconsolable. She realized she had no hair, demanded clothes, and wanted to go home. I told her she had to regain her composure first, but the more I talked, the more agitated and upset she became. I left, hoping she would cry herself out. She was crying every time I came by to check on her, and got upset with me whenever I talked to her. I have not talked to her yet today. Maybe having a different person will help. I am the only medical doctor here, and don't have anyone to help me, except Wängra. I need a surgeon and a psychiatrist and some nurses, but we're too small to rate them. You are welcome to talk to her. Maybe you can get her calmed down."

"Doctor, my wife is a counselor. She can help with this case. Remove his blindfold for a minute, so he can see this terminal. I have her picture, before she lost her hair in decon. You two were connected in the social network. Did you know her?"

After the doctor removed his blindfold again, the settler stood up and walked around to see the terminal. Much to his surprise, Sempul was middle-aged and practically naked, wearing nothing except what looked like an undersized apron. "Yes, I met her at a few functions. She's an archeologist. Was in a dig where broken pottery and snake heads were found. Only the heads, no other snake bones. Found bodily waste and animal blood soaked into the shards, on the inside. She wrote an interesting but mostly misunderstood paper on that dig, suggesting it was proof of ancient chemical and biological warfare. Got her in big trouble, but she really kept at it, and uncovered all sorts of ancient weapons. Guess that is why she is here."

Sempul and the doctor look at each other. "She's an expert on ancient chemical and biological weapons? Thought those were modern inventions."

"No, that's what the government wants you to think. As long as warfare has existed, so has chemical and biological weapons. The simplest was putting dead animals down wells to contaminate drinking water. Her paper said that the archers were given those pots so they could collect their own feces. Then they added blood from slaughtered cattle, and the heads of poisonous snakes. Had to use live snakes, and cut the heads off right into the pots, otherwise the venom breaks down too much. Stirred up the pots, and tied on lids sealed with wax. Buried the pots in gravel on the side of a mountain, facing the sun. After a month of fermenting, the pots were dug up, opened, and stirred again. The archers dipped their arrowheads in it, and let them dry briefly before firing, to keep it from splattering on themselves when they release these arrows. Anyone hit with these poisoned arrows either died within minutes, or had a slow, lingering death. Even archers who mishandled or misfired arrows were killed, if it broke their skin. If the venom didn't get you, the bacterial infection did. The lucky ones died from the venom."

Sempul looks to the settler. "The doctor and the Biology group are struggling with finding a poison to use on the arrows here. Nothing they have tried so far acts fast enough. That was the weakness that lead to the destruction of the second settlement. Couldn't kill the largest ground predators before they killed most of the settlement. Do you think the archeologist can help?"

"I'll ask. Doctor, please put my blindfold back on. I remember she was very a meticulous dresser. With no hair and clothes, she won't want me to see her as she is now. Sempul, when I get back, you can tell me about your wardrobe, such as it is."

They all laugh. The doctor replaces the blindfold, and leads the settler down the hall to the psych cell. She opens the door, pushes him in, and locks the door behind him.

"Good morning, Professor Jillian."

"What are you doing here?"

"I am a convicted subversive, just like you, I'm guessing. We have been sent here to settle this world. My eyesight is not back yet, and I'm feeling dizzy. I haven't eaten for several days. Please help me sit down. Is there a chair in here?"

"No. Just the bed." She jumps up and leads him by the hands to the bed. "Sit here. She sits down beside him, her bare leg close enough to his that he could feel her heat. "I see they haven't given you any clothes yet, either."

"I was told that I would get food and clothing after stopping here at the clinic. While the doctor worked on my eyes, she asked me about you. Told her I met you a couple of times. She is very interested about your background with ancient chemical and biological weapons. Seems the settlers here, including us someday, use bows and arrows, and need something to take down big game quicker. A number of settlers have died already, so this is very important. Can you help?"

"I took a number of chemistry, biology, and medical classes so I could understand the ancient weapons. Even took archery lessons, but never kept up with it. Maybe I could help. But, I'm not going anywhere without clothes and a hat. And, this will sound very odd, but I saw a blue demon that I don't want to see again."

"A blue demon?"

"Yes, horns, a pointy tail, and blue with jagged stripes. Only this one was huge and scary, and I thought they were small and almost cute. My parents read stories to me as a child. I loved most of them, but there was one picture book with a blue demon that I hated. Gave me nightmares. When I arrived here, I was taken somewhere to sleep on the ground. Had the most amazing dream, like reviewing everything in my life, including that nightmare with the cute blue demon. When I woke up, I took off my blindfold. It was dark, so I didn't think it would hurt my eyes. Right there in front of me was the scary blue demon. Then I realized I was naked and completely bald, and got thoroughly unhinged. The blue demon grabbed me and carried me off, and I went nuts. I didn't know what he was going to do to me. I wanted him to kill me, right there, before doing anything else. Got to thinking." She stifles a sob. "My life is over. Everything I've worked for is down the tubes. And, I'm held hostage by a childhood monster that is worse and scarier in real life. I just want to die!" She starts to cry again.

He put his arm over her shoulders and said softly "Well, I was sick back at the last prison, and wanted to die just to put an end to my suffering and shame. Now that I'm here, and had the chance to talk to Sempul, the guy in charge, I'm feeling much better. Our old lives are over. Our family and friends think we are dead. I've been told this place is in the galaxy the farthest from our home galaxy, but still in our local cluster of galaxies. I'm no astronomer, but that sounds like we are very far from home. So, I can either give up and die, or try to make the most of this new life. I, too, am naked and bald all over. But, hair will grow back. We will be given clothes, but if Sempul is any indication, they will not be much. You are the first settler I've met so far, but I think the others are very near, with the food and clothes. We are not supposed to use our old names, and I've been told we will get temporary names very soon. Do you think you can be strong now, and go with me to get food and clothes and maybe new names?"

"No! I don't want anyone to see me like this."

"I'm sure most everyone here, men and women alike, feel that way. But, we all arrived here this way, with nothing but our birthday suits. Just think of it as being reborn. I really would like to have a familiar face here, even if I can't see it yet."

"I don't think you could save me from that huge blue demon."

"I have not seen him yet, but was told the doctor has an assistant that is a survivor from the last settlement. His pregnant wife was killed when the predators attacked them. Sempul and the doctor are very worried about him. I think he is harmless, but I'm very curious about him after hearing your description. I will ask Sempul and the doctor to keep him away for now. Will that do?"

"You drive a hard bargain. Dying seems much simpler. I'm very afraid."

"You were not afraid to publish your paper on the pots and snake heads you helped dig up, and the ones after that on ancient weapons. Just think of this as going out to eat breakfast with a friend. Bet we'll encounter others who are afraid or upset. Help me up and to the door."

"I hope I won't regret this. Let's go before I realize what I'm doing." She helped him to the door. He knocked on it, and it was opened by the doctor.

"Doctor, if your helper is around, could you send him away?"

"He's out hunting with some of the other survivors. They need to eat local plants and animals to stay healthy. Won't be back until tonight."

"Good. Keep him away from her as much as you can. I'll explain later. Do you need to check her eyes?"

"Yes, I should before she leaves. Please follow me to the examination room." The doctor led the way, with the pair of settlers following close behind, arm in arm. Sempul was still sitting at the terminal.

"Sempul, the doctor is going to check out the eyes of my archeologist friend, and then we need some food and clothes."

"For me, clothes first. I can't eat naked in public."

Sempul stands up and walks out in front of them. "You can see my outfit. This is how we are dressing. The women do wear necklaces made of feathers to cover their breasts, somewhat. I'm sure this is much less than what you are expecting, but the reason for this will become clear."

The archeologist looks distraught. Sempul sees her face, and says "Now, sit down here and let the doctor check your eyes. You can listen while the doctor looks at you. I know this is all a shock for you, now, but as you come to know us, you will see why we dress this way. The clothing you wore on your home planet is made from manufactured materials using machines. Here, we have only local plants and animals, and no machines. We have had long discussions on whether looms should be part of this culture. We are establishing a low technology civilization of hunters and gatherers, with the goal of keeping it at that level for thousands of years. Manually powered looms are pushing the limits of such a society. Basket weaving is very useful, and really is only one step away from braiding hair, a very necessary skill here. There is a natural progression from braiding hair, to braiding plant stems to make baskets, to braiding plant fibers to make fabric. The two previous settlements were too small to support weavers. This settlement is planned to become large enough that it could support weavers. You are welcome to work that craft, if you wish, after mastering the basic survival skills for this place. I understand you are familiar with ancient chemical and biological weapons. I ask for your help with a project along those lines first. We have had many settlers die because the largest animals cannot be killed with our existing weapons, spears and arrows. The doctor here is part of the Biology group that is looking for a solution, and my hope is that you can help them."

"The doctor is not dressed like you. Can I dress like her?"

"Well, I have much more to say about that at the introductory meeting. No, you are a settler, and must dress the part. Besides, I don't have any clothes like her's to give you."

The doctor looks to the archeologist and says "I have extra lab coats. When you are working in the Biology domes, you must wear one. You will be working with dangerous substances, and will be around dangerous plants and animals, so you need the protection. But the lab coat must stay in the Biology domes."

"I may live in the lab, just for the coat. I'll think about the weaving job. My grandmother tried to teach me to sew, but I couldn't sit still long enough to be good at it. I'll be happy to help with the weapons problem. Just keep the blue demon away from me."

Sempul says quietly but firmly "You will meet Wängra someday soon. He is a really good person, and means well, but is recovering from hard times, like yourself and the rest of the new settlers. Please don't be afraid of him or the other survivors. They do not know our language, but you will learn theirs."

The archeologist replies "This is all happening too quickly. I'll be better once I feel more like myself. Especially when I get some clothes and food."

The doctor says "Your eyes are fine. I'm surprised after all the crying you did. Just keep out of bright light for a couple of days. Here is a bottle of skin cream for each of you." She hands a bottle to each settler. "Put this on all your skin for the first couple of days. Concentrate on the sore places after that. You will need help to get to some of the places on your backside, but that should be easy. All new settlers have the same burns. Return the bottles when you no longer need it." She turns towards the male settler. "I looked up your stat. Your special diet is designed to reduce your diarrhea problem. Basically, you must keep away from fatty foods, nuts, and some fruits and vegetables. Try to eat a balance of foods at every meal, and see how it works out for you. If you have more trouble, stop by, and we'll work up more specific eating instructions, and drugs if that becomes necessary. I think the prison food was all wrong for you, and here you will have more selection and the freedom to try more things to find what works best for you. Eat what does not cause problems, and don't eat what does cause problems. It's that simple."

Sempul looks at the settlers, and again uses his soft but commanding voice. "I am grateful that the two of you have agreed to help me establish this settlement. The doctor and I have confided in you far beyond what I thought we would. My bosses expect me to follow the approved script to start a new settlement that has been used since the Great Awakening. That means telling the settlers what they need to know in the order the script dictates. I ask that you do not divulge any of the things we have discussed to the other settlers, particularly the survivors, or blue demons as you call them, until the topics come up in our group meetings. There are so many topics, and each will take a lot of time, so this will be difficult for you. I'm sure that the other settlers will be asking you many questions in private. Do what you can to put them off until the topic comes up. Let me know of any problem topics or settlers. Thanks again for your help. Now, I'm hungry. Let's get some breakfast. My wife should be there. She will help explain the clothes to you. If she is not there, I will have to find her first. I know you want clothes before eating, but eating first may be the best I can do if my wife is not available. She is a counselor, and may be with another settler who is having adjustment problems. We have been very, very busy, as thirty-two new settlers have arrived over the past four days. Let's go see the other thirty new settlers. We do not have far to go. Do you need the wheelchair?"

"Not if my friend here can lead me to the food."

"I can take you there, but I'll leave you for the clothes."

"I'll escort you two to the meeting place, the food is along the back wall, and then go to find my wife. I'll take over to help get your food and a place to sit, while the women are getting the clothes. Thank you, doctor."

She nods to Sempul. "Good luck to all of you. Today will be very busy. Just keep out of bright sun light." The doctor walks the other three out of the Medical dome, and closes the airlock door behind them as they walk into the Habitation dome.


	4. Chapter 4: First Lesson

**Pandora: Genesis**

I gratefully acknowledge one of the foremost creative geniuses of our times, James Cameron, for conceiving the lush moon Pandora and the "noble savages," the Na'vi, that inhabit it. This story uses the setting he created for his movie, Avatar. I have not received any money for my work based on Avatar. If I could get paid by the hour for these stories, I would retire and spend all my time dancing and writing in comfort.

This story contains all original characters and situations, giving my thoughts on how the moon Pandora became the home of the Na'vi as seen in the movie.

**Chapter Four: First Lesson**

Sempul leads the pair of settlers out of the Medical dome airlock and onto the plaza, heading towards the nearest door into the large, multistory structure built within the Habitation dome. As they walk across the plaza, she stumbles and he catches her.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I just looked up for the first time since I arrived here, and it hit me that I am truly on a new planet."

Sempul overhears them, and corrects her. "You're on a moon, not a planet. You saw the planet above us, a giant blue gas ball with a single huge storm. It looks like a monstrous eye staring down on us. Some find it threatening or oppressive. I think it is magnificent. I like watching the swirls around the edges of the storm. The planet revolves around the larger and brighter star in a binary system. There is a third star nearby, much smaller and darker, and nobody knows if it is just passing through, or is bound by gravity to the binary pair. Maybe your descendents will discover the answer." The plaza they are walking in seems very drab and utilitarian. There are some tables and chairs scattered about. "Before you settlers arrived, this space was rarely used, except for walking through to get to the other domes. My guess is that there will be a few settlers that will find this a good place to get away from everyone else, in spite of its dreariness. That is why we put some furniture out here. I may hold some small meetings out here, when the sun is right. The best place is the garden on the other side of the building, as you will see later. Let's go inside and meet the others."

Sempul opens the door and holds it for the pair. As the door closes behind them, Sempul points down the hall. "This hallway to the right has some small rooms for private meetings and a little bathroom. My wife has claimed the first room for her private counseling sessions. The kitchen is also down that way. The other way is the airlock into the lobby leading upstairs where the Habitation personnel live and work, including my wife and I. Straight ahead is the main meeting room. The settlers have the main meeting room and sleeping room with bathroom on the ground floor, and we have everything else, including the floors above."

Just as he finishes speaking, red lights above the doors come on. The doors from the airlock and meeting room burst open. From the airlock comes two young adults, male and female, both dressed casually and carrying large, military style automatic weapons that are bright red in color. From the meeting room comes a middle-aged woman dressed like Sempul, except she is also wearing a necklace made from many long feathers that effectively covers her breasts. She turns around and slams the door shut. A mechanical thud is heard as all closed doors automatically lock.

The middle-aged woman shouts "Where have you been? I could have been killed!"

Sempul looks to the pair of settlers, and says "This is my wife. Please call her Sa'nok."

"The introductions can wait. There's a problem we need to handle. Now!"

He looks to the pair of staffers in the airlock. "What did I say about clothing around the settlers? You are not to appear down here unless you are in costume. Go upstairs and change. I need both of you dressed, hunter style."

The man answers "We're here because your wife called an emergency. We didn't have time to change!"

Sempul replies "Maybe I should have the entire staff wearing costumes all the time. Or at least everyone on duty should be in costume. I'll decide after I take care of this emergency." He points to the young woman and says "After you change, get the cart with the clothing for the settlers and bring it down here. You will help Sa'nok hand them out and explain the clothing to the women." Next he points to the young man and says "After you change, get the box of name tags and leather cords that is in my office, and bring it down here to me. After you and I hand out and explain the clothing to the men, you will help me with assigning names to the settlers. Also bring down a wireless camera on a tall stand. We don't have mirrors in the meeting room, so set up the camera and turn on the large screen up front so the settlers can see themselves in their new clothes. Oh, thanks to both of you for coming to rescue my wife. Keep up the good work. Remind me later, and I will put commendations in your files."

The young man asks "Do you want these weapons?"

Sempul looks to his wife. She shakes her head no. He looks to the pair and replies "No, thanks. We'll get handguns. Those are too big for this problem, I should think. If I call an emergency while cleaning this up, have everyone respond with those big weapons. Clothing won't matter if it comes to that." The pair nod to their boss, and close the airlock door.

He looks to his wife and says "Is the problem in the meeting room or the sleeping room?"

"They're still in the sleeping room. I slammed the door in their faces, and hit the panic button in my head. That door locked right away. I ran through the meeting room, and was surprised I could still get through this door."

"That's how it should work. You can get through, but no else can after the door is closed by you." Sempul walks to a panel by the airlock door and opens it. "Everyone, please stand back. The system won't work if anyone else is too close." The settlers join Sa'nok by the door to the main meeting room. He nods his head near the panel and a green light comes on. Then, he bends down a pipe and speaks into it. "Activate." Another green light comes on. "Close and lock all doors in meeting and sleeping rooms. Display meeting room." A screen above the panel lights up showing the meeting room. Settlers are milling around, trying the locked doors, or eating breakfast as if nothing unusual is happening. "Broadcast to meeting room only." Another light appears. "Attention, settlers. Sorry for the disruption. Is there anyone who has a problem now? Speak up if you do." He stops and listens. There are numerous replies, a few unintelligible but all that can be understood are in the negative. "Move eight tables to the front of the room, and place four chairs behind each table facing towards the front. Please take a seat with men on one side of the room and the women on the other, leaving the empty seats in the middle. If you are eating, you can take your food with you and continue eating. Taking something to drink is a good idea, this may take some time." The screen shows the settlers moving the furniture and getting food and drinks from the rear. One woman takes charge and gets everyone seated, and then takes her place. Six chairs remain empty near the center. "Open locker." A drawer slides out of the wall, and Sempul takes out a portable controller. "Dear, do you want a weapon?"

"Yes. Two. Non-lethal only." She puts her arms out, hands facing up at waist level.

He removes a bright yellow handgun, and throws it to her. She catches it, puts it under her arm, and puts her hands out again. He throws a second bright yellow handgun to her. She catches it, and expertly readies it. She swaps the guns and readies the other. "I'll take one of each." He picks up a bright red handgun, readies it, and slides it against the small of his back under the leather cord holding his loincloth. "Damn, that's cold."

"Serves you right for making us wear these native costumes."

He scowls at her, picks up a bright yellow handgun, and readies it. "Close locker." The drawer slides shut. "Close display." The screen goes dark. "Transfer to portable controller." He pushes the pipe back and closes the panel. Speaking into the portable controller, he says "Open door to meeting room." He holds his handgun at the ready, but there is no one by the door when it opens. Nodding to his wife, he turns, runs in, and sweeps the room with his weapon. Other than the sitting settlers, the large meeting room is empty. He waves to her, and she runs in, taking her place besides him. He says loudly "The two settlers with me, please come in and take your places." They walk in and cross the room to the chairs. She leads him to the last empty chair on the men's side, and then takes the chair besides him on the women's side. Now, only four empty chairs remain on the women's side. "Sa'nok, did you have four women attack you?"

"No, just three. I was counseling a woman, and she reacted as the three came up from behind. One swung at me, but I caught her arm and shoved her back into the other two. I pushed the woman I was counseling out ahead of me. Guess there is a fourth woman stuck in there with them."

"That means I just can't kill them all. Hate to lose someone just because she is in the wrong place at the wrong time." Speaking into the portable controller, he says "Open outside door on back lobby. Call Ops."

Hidden speakers in the meeting room boom out "Yes."

"Get ready to flood the sleeping room with outside air. Wait for my mark. Alert the doctor, may have three or four respiratory cases. Have her get help and come through the back door."

"Calling the doctor now. Building up the pressure of breathable air for later purging. Waiting for your mark." All in the meeting room hear hidden fans spin up, and have to pop their ears as the air pressure rises.

"Display sleeping room." A screen by the door turns on, showing three naked women standing by the door. Two look distraught and lost. The other looks furious, and is beating on the locked door and screaming. "Broadcast sleeping room into meeting room."

"Open this door, you bitch. I'll kick your ass so hard, you'll be spitting my toenails out. Open this door, now. Come on, you coward." She continues her tirade non-stop without any sign of winding down.

"Well, she is certainly charming. She's the animal trainer, I think. I only see three. Do you see the fourth?"

"No, I don't. Could be hiding under a bed."

"Broadcast to sleeping room only. Attention, you three women by the door. You are locked into the sleeping room, and have nowhere to go. Now is a good time to calm down. Lie down on the floor, face down, and end this now. I'll open the door when all three of you are on the floor."

"Another coward. Afraid to show your face, huh? Open this door and I'll teach you a lesson. I will not lay down on the floor for you or that ugly bitch that locked us in here." The other two women look desperate, and realize the situation is becoming much worse than complaining about a lack of clothing. They get down on their knees, and beg the irate one to join them.

"Wrong answer. The atmosphere outside is poisonous. Your room will be flooded with that outside air. You will get sick, maybe die. Even if you don't give up first, lying down is much easier. If you remain standing, you will be injured when you fall down as you pass out. You can break your teeth, or jaw, or neck, or skull. You could drown in your own vomit if you land on your back. So, lie down on your side or stomach to keep from drowning and getting hurt."

"I don't want to live here, so kill me." The other two start pleading with her. "What's wrong with you two? He's bluffing. He's not going to kill us. We were brought here for a reason. Don't give in now, or we're as good as dead anyway. Withholding clothes is just a stupid way to show us they are in charge. I don't want to put up with these idiots anymore. Go ahead and kill me, what are you waiting for? Show everyone how tough you are, killing naked women who can't even see you. What a coward!" She keeps shouting, so she does not have to listen to the other two.

"Call Ops."

The speakers go silent, and then "Yes" is heard again.

"Mark. Flood the sleeping room with outside air."

"Outside air is being pumped in now."

"Be ready to switch back to breathable air and purge on my mark. Alert Maintenance and request the cleaning of the sleeping room."

"Waiting for your mark. Maintenance has been notified."

Sempul and Sa'nok are concentrating on the screen. The doctor arrives with a gurney covered with medical equipment, followed by three scientists from the Biology group, each pushing an empty gurney. They join Sempul and Sa'nok around the screen. Some of the seated settlers are trying to watch with them, but are too far away to see much. The rest are just waiting in silence for this bad situation to play itself out. In the sleeping room, all three women are coughing. One did not eat breakfast, and is laying on her side. The one that did eat has vomited on the floor, and slides backwards on her stomach to distance herself from the puddle. Soon, both are out. The standing woman puts both hands on the door to prop herself up while coughing. As the air affects her, she puts her head against the door between her hands. Soon, she passes out and drops down onto the floor, face first.

As soon as all three women are down and out cold, Sempul springs into action. "Call Ops."

"Yes."

"Mark. Stop the outside air. Purge the sleeping room. Open the door between the sleeping room and the meeting room as soon as it is safe to enter."

"Stopping outside air and purging. Door will open when safe." The sound of fans gets much louder for a short period of time, and then stops, leaving a deafening silence. Everyone's ears pop as the air pressure in the meeting room drops.

The door opens, almost instantly filling the meeting room with a rotten odor, the tell-tale smell of the outside air. The archeologist whispers to the manager "Definitely hydrogen sulfide. It's unmistakeable."

Sempul and the doctor are the first two into the sleeping room, picking up the limp form of the woman who was standing against the door. She fell down on her face and broke her nose, and now lies in a pool of blood. They lift her onto a gurney and push her into the meeting room. The doctor works on her nose and stops the bleeding. Then, the doctor cleans her face and puts a respirator mask on her, and soon she starts coughing. Two scientists pick up the woman lying on her side, who begins coughing as soon as she is moved. They help her up and sit her down on a chair in the meeting room. They give her a breathing mask connected to a respirator to flush and neutralize the harmful gasses out of her lungs. Sa'nok and the other scientist helps the woman lying on her stomach up on her feet. Other than loosing her breakfast, she quickly recovers, with only an occasional cough indicating her exposure to the atmosphere. She walks back to the showers and cleans herself up. As she returns to the meeting room, Sempul and Sa'nok both look at her. They notice motion behind her, through the doors to the garden, and see the fourth woman trying to get in. He looks to his wife, and commands "Run out the back door and retrieve our missing woman from the garden." She nods her head and strides away. Sempul takes the arm of the woman from the showers, and walks her to the doctor. "Doctor, as soon as you are done with these three, have them take the empty seats up front. I need their undivided attention, so no pain killers. The sooner, the better." The barely restrained anger in his voice makes him sound very threatening.

The doctor wants to tell him that she will decide what treatment is needed, but simply nods her assent. This is not the time or place to disagree with him, as she has never seen this side of him before now, or his anger, and the settlers are listening in. She takes the arm of the woman from the showers, directs her to an empty chair alongside the other sitting woman, and puts a respirator mask on her to begin her treatment.

Sempul walks back to the panel by the airlock door. "Unlock all doors in the sleeping and meeting rooms. Open drawer." He safes his weapons and returns them to their slots. His wife returns with the last woman, and hands her weapons to him as she passes by. "Take her through the food line on the way to the front tables. Get something for yourself, if you want." He safes her weapons and puts them away. "Close drawer and deactivate." He puts the portable controller in the drawer as it slides back into the wall and locks shut. He follows his wife and the settler as they walk to the front of the meeting room.

Sempul leans over the shoulder of the archeologist and says, "Sorry, the clothes are not here yet. You should get something to eat now."

She looks back at him and smiles with an understanding face. "No problem, you have your hands full. I'll get breakfast now and wait for the clothes. I know they're coming, since I heard you give the order to your pretty staffer before the troubles started here. I'm sure the men will appreciate her in the local style."

Sempul smiles with appreciation in return. She just let everyone know the clothes are on the way, and not in reaction to the altercation. He turns toward the manager, still in his blindfold in spite of the excitement, and says "I promised I would take you through the food line. Sorry for the delay, but now is a good time. I will describe each selection to you. Our cooks are using our imported ingredients but preparing them as your clan will." A couple of the other settlers hear this, and ask if they can listen in on these explanations. Sempul recognizes one as an amateur chef, welcomes the positive interest, and happily invites them along. He helps the manager up, and they and the archeologist go through the food line together, with the others listening in and sampling some items. There are no plates or silverware. Large, waxy serving leaves are used for plates. A large basket of cleaning leaves of various sizes and drynesses provides the replacement for napkins. There are no knives, forks, or spoons, but Sempul says sometimes they put out knives made of stone or animal claws. There are no cups or drinking glasses, but there are fired clay bowls used for soups and drinks. Sempul's favorite meal is a roll of meats, nuts, fruits, and vegetables wrapped in an edible leaf. He says that these wraps usually will be served at each meal in the jungle, and will be different each time depending on the ingredients that are available. His cooks have to work at varying them for each meal, because they have the same ingredients all the time. The listeners are interested in knowing what herbs and spices are available in the jungle. Sempul has no idea, but says that food identification and preparation is part of the basic survival skills each settler must have. He promises to arrange a meeting in the future with the Biology group to discuss herbs and spices, along with other finer points of food preparation.

When they return to the tables with breakfast, the mood in the room has improved noticeably.

Sempul sets his breakfast down across from the manager, who is sitting near the center of the line of tables. He speaks to the settlers with a clear and friendlier voice. "The clothes and name tags should be here shortly. I'm going to eat my breakfast now. If you want more food or drink, or need to use a toilet, help yourself. Just come back to your seat as soon as you can, so we can get started when these things get here." He sits down and starts eating his wraps.

The doctor brings two of the women she was treating to the front of the meeting room. "Sempul, I'm releasing these two women to you now. They may have coughing fits on occasion, but otherwise are in good shape. I'd like to keep the other woman on the respirator for as long as I can this morning."

"Well, when you see the clothes cart come in, get her up. I have something to say to all settlers before we hand out the clothes. If she can't handle it, I'll take her to the Medical dome after I'm done, and you can treat her as you see fit, at least until the mid-day meal. Thank you, doctor. I'm sorry to put you through this traumatic experience. I had hoped this would never be necessary, but it was today."

"I understand. My hope is you can talk some sense into these settlers so we don't have to do this again any time soon."

That is my hope also. And, thank your helpers for coming over. I know this is not in their job descriptions, and I appreciate their willingness to help out. Remind me, and I'll send commendations to you and your helpers."

"I'll pass the word, and send you a text with their names and personnel file addresses."

"Thanks again, doctor." Sempul turns to the two women, and his face hardens. "I don't know what started it, or who did what to whom, but I do not tolerate any attacks on my wife and staff. If you see it happening again, you must step in and be forceful enough to stop it before it goes as far as it did today. If you start an attack yourself, I will kill you. Do you understand?"

Both women looked shocked and distressed, and meekly whisper "Yes."

"Good. Now, go back to the sleeping room and clean up the blood and emesis on the floor by the doorway. Use the cleaning leaves from the bathroom area, because they have been contaminated by the outside air, and flush it all down a toilet. When you are done, you may get something to eat and drink, and join us here. Don't take long." The two women nod and quickly scurry away.

Sempul returns to his breakfast. He finishes his first wrap, and has eaten about half of his second wrap when a shapely young woman dressed like Sa'nok, but with a much skimpier top, arrives in the back of the meeting room pushing a cart. On the cart is a rack with many hangers holding the clothes for the settlers. A cheer goes up from the settlers, mainly the women. Sempul stands, and waves her to stop. He gulps down the rest of his wrap, and washes it down with a bowl of water. A handsome young man dressed like Sempul follows the young woman into the meeting room, carrying a box and a camera on a stand, and stops alongside her. Some settlers, men and women alike, go slack-jawed looking at the young couple in loincloths. One woman is heard to say to herself "I never looked that good," and a ripple of laughter goes through the room when a man answers "Neither have I".

Sempul addresses the room. "Everyone, I'm going to take a quick break and then round up the settlers who are not sitting. Get your last food and drink from the back, if you want it, and take a break if you need it. As soon as everyone is seated, we will begin. I have a few words to say before we hand out the clothes. Doctor, please bring your patient up here, and then you may leave. Thanks again for your help today."

The doctor replies, "Right away, Sempul." She takes the mask off her patient and turns off the respirator. She gives her some last minute instructions, and then helps her off the gurney. They walk up front, and the woman with the broken nose takes the center of the three empty chairs. The biologists have left already, taking three gurneys with them. The doctor gathers up her things onto the remaining gurney, and pushes it out the door.

The two women who cleaned the floor return carrying food and drinks. One asks the woman with the broken nose if she wants anything, but Sempul walks up from behind carrying two bowls of water, and says "Good, our troublemakers are reunited. Please sit down now." Sempul walks between the tables, and sets one bowl down in front of the woman with the broken nose. "All three of you need to drink as much water as you can to clean out your systems. Here, drink up." The woman with the broken nose simply glares at Sempul, but then starts coughing. "Yes, you think you are a tough girl, but being tough sometimes means being stupid. On this moon, outside these domes, being tough can be useful, but being stupid usually means you are about to become dead. Many settlers have died here already, and they weren't being stupid. Do you understand?" The woman makes no reply, except to launch the bowl of water off the table and onto Sempul. He repeats, "Do you understand?" She doesn't move a muscle this time, except to glare into his eyes. Sempul hits her in the face, on her broken nose, hard enough to knock her and the chair she's sitting in over backwards onto the floor. She screams out in pain and surprise, and starts sobbing between coughs. Sempul looks to the women on either side of her, and growls "Well, pick her up and get her sitting upright again." They jump up, one picking her up and the other picking up the chair. They get her up in the chair again so she's looking at Sempul, and then sit down themselves. He repeats, "Do you understand?" This time, between sobs, she screams "Yes."

"That's better. If you threaten or attack me, my wife, or any other staff members in these domes, I will kill you. We don't have time to deal with your nonsense. We have a tough job here, setting up a new civilization to last for millions of years without making any technical advancements. If you can't help us do that, you are a waste of our valuable time. There are plenty of predators out there that would like to have you for a meal. I will be happy to feed you to them. Do you understand?"

This time, she whispers "Yes" followed by a coughing fit.

"I'm giving your friends their first big assignment. You two are to keep an eye on your hot-headed friend here. Whenever she is being stupid, you are to remind her of the hungry predators waiting for her. If she wants to hurt someone, your job is to stop her, with force if need be. Killing her is acceptable, if it comes to that. Do you understand?"

They say "Yes" together, but look very distressed by the command.

"Good. If you don't do this, I will feed you to the predators, too. Some of them are big enough that they would need all three of you to make a meal."

Sempul walks to the far end of the tables, turns around, and keeps moving, looking into the face of each woman, and then each man, all thirty-two new settlers. "My superiors have given me a script to follow, but this event has upset the plan a bit. I will start the introductory meeting during the mid-day meal, as planned. We will cover the topics as we must. But, now is a good time for the first lesson. Last night, my wife and I decided to hand out the clothes this morning, as that seems to be the problem most of you have focused upon. But that is not the main problem for any of you. I know none of you really want to be here. You are all newly convicted subversives, and were sent out here without any preparation. We purposely left the first few days open to give you a chance to come to terms with your new situation. A few of you are still nursing your eyes, and have not seen the garden or the planet above us or the suns and stars. But, you will have time. If you are upset, that really is the natural reaction for what has happened to you. However, that does not excuse physically attacking anyone. My wife is a counselor. She will talk with each of you, and see how you are adjusting. If you are angry or depressed, you must tell her, so she can help you. You can also talk to me, if you prefer. One of you has already asked me for my help. I'm not a counselor, but do have some training in that regard. Your old life is over. This moon and its jungle is your life now. You can never go back. You can die, withdraw, or move forward. My hope is that you dive into this new situation with all your energy and enthusiasm. We have much to accomplish. Just learning the basic survival skills for this moon is a very tough job. But, that is easy compared to building a new civilization from scratch. If you are not ready for this now, I understand. We are starting slowly. We are all going back to school for awhile. You will have time to recover from the dislocation you have suffered. Please be honest to yourself and us in all matters, particularly with your feelings."

He paces in front of the settlers, collecting his thoughts. "Why is this important? The problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan. This goes against the civilization you came from, but it is necessary for the new civilization here. A clan is so small, everyone is important. Every job is important. If someone cannot perform at their best because they are distracted by a personal problem, they could die. Maybe others could die. Maybe the entire clan could die. The first settlement here was completely wiped out, so that is no exaggeration. You all have personal problems, and you must work to resolve them here, before you move out into the jungle. That is also why I am so hard on troublemakers. Better to kill a few who don't want to fit in rather than kill the whole group trying to deal with them. This is your first lesson. Everyone, say it with me."

The settlers look incredulous, but say the words with Sempul. "The problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan."

Sempul says, "You can do better than that. Say it again."

The settlers say the words with Sempul more forcefully and more in unison. "The problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan."

"Again, this time say it like you mean it."

They all yell out in unison. "The problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan."

Sempul continues "You are strangers now, but soon you will know each other like brothers and sisters. You will be brothers and sisters together in the clan. That is just one reason why we delayed passing out clothes until now. From the civilization you left, you rarely see naked strangers, but it is more likely you have seen naked siblings. Say it again." This time Sempul does not lead them.

"The problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan."

"Remember it. I will ask you to repeat it again and again. But, two more things must be mentioned before we hand out the clothes. There were twenty-six settlers locked in here. When I asked you to move tables and be seated up here, you worked together well and did so very quickly and efficiently. I thank you for working together as a group. This skill is very necessary for living in the jungle. Someday, someone will tell you to freeze, or run, or climb a tree, or jump into water. If you do so, you will save your life. If you question the order, you will lose your life. Yes, you must develop confidence and trust with each other to make this behavior easier to accept. But, your cooperation today bodes well for the future of your clan."

"Secondly, we have become accustomed to that rotten smell from the poisonous air outside. That smell can make some sick, and will remain in the sleeping room until everything in there is cleaned. So, after you get your clothing, you will get to work together to wash down every surface of that room. That means carrying all beds out into the garden. Washing down the beds. Washing the floors, walls, and ceilings in the sleeping room. This includes the bathroom, so the toilets and sinks and showers must also be cleaned, inside and out. The cleaning and drying leaves must also be replaced. Use those on the beds and fixtures, and the rest must be discarded. Some of the maintenance workers will be here soon to provide the power washers and supplies, but everyone who has their eyesight back should help this morning."

"Well, my few words have turned into far too many words. Usually, I would ask for questions, and I'm sure you have many, many questions. They will have to wait until later. One of you told me that the introductory meeting should take many days, because of all the questions waiting to be asked. I agree. Let's put those off, and get on with the clothing."

Sempul waves to his staffers waiting with the cart. They come forward, pushing the cart to the front of the room. Sempul asks "Are you both dressed hunter style, as I asked?"

"Yes, sir," they answer in unison, sounding very military.

"Please hand me a tewng, and then set up the camera."

The woman staffer grabs one off the rack and hands it to Sempul. He holds it up in front of his face and walks around so all settlers can see it. The other staffer sets up the camera.

"There was much discussion about the design of these loincloths before the first settlers wore them outside. There is a very long file with many pictures from those deliberations. One, two, or more panels? Below the knees, or much shorter? As wide as the hips, or barely wide enough to cover the groin? Plain or decorated? Loosely woven, or tightly woven?" He pauses. "Guess what? It comes down to personal preference, what is most comfortable for you, based mainly on the job in the clan you have. You don't want to wear your best one if you are about to butcher a yerik or ride a pa'li. About the only rule is color. Red is reserved for the married couple that runs the clan. Most adults are hunters, and they like green to blend into the jungle. You can have whatever color, other than red, that you can make. There's the rub. The clothes you wore in your old life were made by machines from manufactured materials. You went to your favorite boutique and bought what you liked. Here, plants must be gathered and processed to make the fibers. The fibers must be spun into thread. The thread must be dyed and woven into fabric. The fabric must be sown into these. It is all done by hand, and it is very time consuming. If you can't make them, someone in the clan must be able to make them, or nobody has them. That is another reason why these clothes were not made available sooner. They were still being made yesterday. There are some folks here that can make these, and they worked very hard to make what you see on this rack. It takes a great deal of time and energy to make one. These may not seen like much, but they mean a great deal to those that do the work. Sa'nok, please say something about the tops the women wear."

Sa'nok walks past Sempul and stops in the middle of the tables with the women. "You see my top. It is made of many feathers, many more than normal. It's called a fkxile. At the introductory meeting this afternoon, you will hear more about learning this language. My husband keeps saying words from this language, but it is not nearly as natural for me yet. Feathers are very valuable here. The best quality feathers are used for fletching on arrows. The most important function of a clan is to keep itself healthy by eating well, and having high quality arrows is the first step to meeting that goal. All remaining feathers are used in necklaces or adornments tied in the hair or around arms or legs. The women here wear necklaces to cover their aureolas and nipples, but leave most of their breasts uncovered. I am not a permanent resident here, and I am not comfortable with showing that much of my breasts. So, I asked the clothing makers to give me extra feathers and I tied them into this top. They thought it was a joke at first, but got unhappy with me when I refused to give them back. They provided enough necklaces for you, but not many extra, and there are not enough extra feathers to make another top like this. So, I ask you to take the one necklace that fits you the best and whose colors and design makes you the happiest. They will seem very skimpy compared with what you are used to, but that is the style here. In time, it will become natural for all of you. Now, I'll let Sempul explain the most important part." She walked around the end of the tables and stood behind the seated women.

"The first settlers went out into the jungle, and came back almost immediately with complaints. None of the parameters I mentioned really matters. There are lots of insects here that are attracted by the smells of the groin area, male and female alike. Of course, a tewng hides the groin from the front, but does not protect it. So, a second piece is needed. Underwear, if you like. Please hand me a groin strap. Sorry, I don't remember its name." As he looks at them, the staffers and Sa'nok all shake their heads. They don't know its name, either.

The staffer hands him one that looks like a plain strip of cloth. "Do you want a telem to go with it?"

"Yes, irayo. You want one that looks way too wide, so it bows out in the middle to give you room even when the outside edges are tight against your skin. You put this cord through the back end of the strap, wrap the cord around you and pull the strap up between your legs in front, and put the cord through the front. Then, tie the ends of the cord together on your side over the hip to hold it in place. Now, living here in the domes, we don't have these nasty insects, so your strap does not have to be very tight, or you can just not wear it. Outside, your strap must be very tight around the edges to keep the insects out. That is what I meant when I said hunter style. You two, hold up your loincloths and show off your straps, so the settlers can see how it must be done for hunter style."

The two staffers look a little uncomfortable, but they do as they are ordered. Some settlers ask them to come closer, or turn around, and they oblige.

"I want all of you to wear your strap hunter style until I say otherwise. I will be checking you to make sure you know how to put in on correctly. When I am satisfied all of you are wearing it correctly, I will say so, and then we can loosen up." He looks across the row of faces. "Once you have the groin strap on, you put your tewng on over it, using another telem if needed. Some loincloths do not need a separate cord, because they have belt-like pieces already sewn on. You six men on the end, get up and bring three more tables up to the front here. Put one in front of the men, and the other two in front of the women. We'll spread the loincloths and necklaces out on the tables to make it easier to see and pick one for you. Sa'nok and my woman staffer will help the women, and also explain how to adjust a top. And, they will tell you what you put in your strap to absorb your menses during your periods. I and my man staffer will help the men. Obviously, a hunter style strap is painful when you get an erection, so we'll show you the trick for dealing with that. However, it supports your testicles very well, and is needed for riding pa'li and ikran, and jumping out of trees. I will go back and turn down the lights up here, so those of you still in blindfolds can remove them and pick a loincloth without hurting your eyes. I don't have a mirror, but I'll turn on the main screen up here, and you can use that camera to see yourself. Point the camera at an angle. Just stand in front of it, and turn your head toward the screen, so you can see yourself from head to toe. Get the tables now. After you get dressed, please start work on cleaning the sleeping room. I see the staffers from Maintenance are here. We need to carry the beds out to the garden, right away, so they can get to work washing the ceiling. Our next clan meeting begins during the midday meal."

With that, the meeting ended. The settlers excitedly pick out their new clothes, and begin looking the parts they are destined to play.


	5. Chapter 5: Recoveries

**Pandora: Genesis**

I gratefully acknowledge one of the foremost creative geniuses of our times, James Cameron, for conceiving the lush moon Pandora and the "noble savages," the Na'vi, that inhabit it. This story uses the setting he created for his movie, Avatar. I have not received any money for my work based on Avatar. If I could get paid by the hour for these stories, I would retire and spend all my time dancing and writing in comfort.

This story contains all original characters and situations, giving my thoughts on how the moon Pandora became the home of the Na'vi as seen in the movie.

**Chapter Five: Recoveries**

As each settler selects an outfit and learns the intricacies of the seemingly simplistic garb, he or she will either join the work party or take a seat in the meeting room. Sempul then gives each settler a curious name tag in a leather holder hanging on a leather cord. Each settler receives a picture of a plant or animal. Actually, each receives a pad of these pictures with adhesive backs, so a tag can be placed on their bed and on their bottle of skin cream. Sempul has each settler repeat the name of the item in the picture. Some were easier to say and remember than others. The manager has a picture of a bird-like creature called a toruk. The archeologist has a picture of a blue flower called a seze. The woman with the broken nose has a picture of a plant called a txumtsä'wll, but she cannot remember how to say it again.

The seated settlers are all wearing blindfolds except for one, the woman with the broken nose. She seems to cough almost non-stop now. The others are making small-talk, mostly speculating on how they could settle a world where the atmosphere is poisonous. Most are convinced that the atmosphere is not poisonous, and the episode with the three women is a hoax to control them. Toruk is one of the sitting settlers but keeps quiet, as he is feeling very uncomfortable with this line of discussion. Sempel, Sa'nok, and the two staffers are with the work party in the adjacent sleeping room, directing the effort. So, Toruk stands up, holds the pad on one eye up just enough to see the floor, and walks to the sleeping room. He encounters Sempul just beyond the doorway. "Sempul, a word with you, please, if you can spare the time."

"Yes. Good to see you about, Toruk, even though the doctor wouldn't like to see you do that. What can I do for you?"

"Two things. The blind-folded group is not convinced that outside air was used on the three women in here earlier. Thought you should know. I didn't want to stay and tell them that we are to be surgically altered to breathe it."

"Thanks for telling me. And?"

"The woman with the broken nose is coughing almost continuously. If she takes me to the airlock into the clinic, do you think the doctor would let us in?"

"Yes, I think so, if you do the talking."

"Good. I feel useless now, but if she will take me there, maybe I can talk to her and figure out her problem."

"That's an excellent idea, Toruk. Show Txumtsä'wll the way to the clinic, if she'll go with you. Tell the doctor you both have to be back in time for the midday meal."

"Thanks, will do. See you then." They both chuckle as he holds the pad up again, and walks back into the meeting room. He shuffles up behind the coughing woman, and puts his hand on her shoulder. "Looks like you've been stood up. I know the way to the clinic. If you will go with me, I think it best to have the doctor treat you some more."

She looks over her shoulder at him, and whispers "Yes, I need more treatment. Thanks." She stands up, holds his arm, and asks "Which way?"

"Go to the back of the room, and go out the door on the right, opposite from the sleeping room." She leads him out the door and onto the plaza, where she stops for another coughing fit. They make it to the airlock door into the Medical dome, and she pushes the big red button.

After a brief wait, the doctor's voice is heard "Yes, is this an emergency?"

Toruk speaks up "Maybe. I'm the settler Sempul brought in earlier this morning. I have the woman with the broken nose with me. She has been coughing almost non-stop since you left the main meeting room earlier today. She's in need of more treatment. We can stay until the midday meal."

"I'm in the Botany dome now, so it will take me several minutes to get to you. Don't go away."

"We'll wait right here. Thanks."

She has another coughing fit, but when it ends, she walks over and picks up two chairs and carries them to the airlock door. They both sit down and she looks around the deserted plaza.

"I overheard Sempul say you're an animal trainer. Is that true?"

"Yes, my parents raise horses, so I've been around them my entire life. Always found horses more loving and understanding than people. Horses can't hurt you like people can."

"Seems like you wanted to do the hurting this morning. What was that all about?"

"Why do you care?"

"I just got here last night. I don't know what I've gotten into, but it's been a real whirlwind, one strange thing after another. You have provided the most excitement so far. Just wanted to know what made you so angry. And how you became a convicted subversive."

"That's easy. When I was little, something bad happened to me. Made me think religion is all bullshit. How could any loving god let bad things happen to children? Do children deserve bad experiences? None of the answers from religious people make any sense to me. My country says it allows religious freedom, but only if you believe in the same religion that everyone else believes in. If there is a god, he, she, or it doesn't care about me, or any other kids who have been hurt!" She has another coughing fit after raising her voice.

He waits for her to recover, and says "I can see how that got you into trouble."

With a soft voice, she slowly says "Yes, I'm the one that got hurt, and then I have to pay for being hurt. Just like this morning. I've been here for two days. I'm pissed that they left us naked until now. If they want us to do something for them, at least they could make us feel better about being here, and that includes giving us clothes when we arrive. And give us real clothes and real names, instead of this bullshit." She holds out her necklace and name tag. "I can't even pronounce the name he gave me. What good is that?" She starts coughing again. He reaches out, and puts his hand on her bare back while she coughs. Before she recovers, the airlock door opens.

The doctor runs out to them, and says "You're still coughing like that? Come inside, and I'll fix you up." She looks to him, and asks "Do you need anything?"

"No. I still have my skin cream. Until I get my eyes back, I'm feeling pretty useless. I knew how to get here, so I helped lead her. If you don't mind, I'd like to keep her company until we have to leave for the midday meal. Sempul has the next clan meeting then, and we've seen how he gets when settlers upset him. Don't want to be late."

"Yes. I've worked with him for a long time, and never saw him like he was this morning. If she says you can stay, I'll let you in."

"Please, doctor, let him in. I need a friend now."

"Just to warn you, she'll be on a respirator, and won't be able to speak much."

"That's fine with me. No conversation beats the small-talk I heard back in the meeting room."

"Let's get inside." The doctor helps the woman up, and takes one arm. He takes her other arm. They walk into the airlock, and after it cycles, walk down the hall to the treatment room.

"You might want to check her nose first. She may have hurt it again." The doctor gives him a funny look, and says "Oh?" to her. The animal trainer just hangs her head. The doctor sits her down in the treatment chair, and then sits him down in a nearby chair on wheels. She looks at the nose first, and pulls out the packing she inserted earlier. "I'm going to give you a local pain-killer in your nose, so I can reset the cartilage, and then I'll repack it. Try not to hurt it again." The animal trainer gives her a glare at first, but then just nods. The doctor puts the respirator on her, and walks out. Shortly, she returns with a syringe. "I'll give you the pain killer now, and leave you on the respirator for a little while to let the pain killer take effect." She gives her injections in both nostrils, and then talks to the manager while she is waiting. "I see you both are dressed in the local style now."

"Yes, it will take some getting used to, especially the hunter style strap between the legs. Looking at Sempul, it seems trivial, but these get-ups are harder than they look. I know that they are working to prepare us for living in the jungle, but it seems many are unhappy with this approach."

"Well, I've worked several of these settlement efforts, and the 'total immersion' approach really is the best for what must be done here. You haven't been here long enough to see that yet."

"That may be. The introductory meeting is coming with the midday meal today, so my hope is we all get a better idea of what's going on. Sempul has a tough job to convince us settlers. Some think the gassing of the three women this morning was a hoax, and the outside air is breathable."

"Believe me, everything on this moon is poisonous to us, the air, the water, the plants, the animals. These women were exposed to the outside air. That was no hoax. Sempul will prove that to everyone's satisfaction, soon enough, I'm sure. I see you have name tags now. What are you called?"

"I got an easy one, Toruk."

"Congratulations, Sempul must really like you. That is the largest predator on this moon, the most feared animal in the air. Only the palulukan is more feared on the ground."

"She has a tough one, some plant with a hard to pronounce name." The animal trainer holds up her name tag for the doctor to see.

"I think that is called a txumtsä'wll. No doubt he gave that to you because of the unpleasantness earlier this morning. This plant is very dangerous, it spits out poison. It's one of the plants the Biology group here is studying."

The animal trainer drops her head, obviously disappointed with this news.

"The archeologist that was here this morning is called Seze. It looks like a blue flower."

"Sempul gave her a nice name. How did he assign them?"

"Looks like men are named for animals, and women are named for plants. He just put these leather holders with tags on over our heads after we donned an outfit. So, he picked the names as he saw fit."

The doctor looks to the seated woman, and says "Well, let me take off this mask, and work on your nose now. Do you feel this?" The doctor pinches her nose.

"I can tell you touched my nose, but it didn't hurt."

"Good. Let me get your nose straightened out, now that it is numb on the inside. Get up here on this exam table, and lay down on your back."

As she is getting onto the table, she says "I wish Sempul would have killed me. I'm going to be his whipping girl from now on. Doctor, you know him, is there anything I can do to get out of trouble?"

"Honestly, I never saw him upset or angry until this morning. Usually, he is very reasonable and understanding."

"After his talk this morning about our first lesson, 'the problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan,' my guess is that you must do something in front of the entire group. I know you feel wronged, but if you would apologize to Sa'nok, Sempul, the two women who were with you, and then the entire clan, maybe that would impress him enough to lighten up on you. Don't know what it will take to get a nicer name, you may have to work that out privately, afterward."

"Do you think that will get me out of trouble?"

"I just met him this morning. I don't know, but he does seem a reasonable guy. Certainly, it would surprise him. He's not expecting you to back down anytime soon. Doctor, what do you think?"

"No one here, in either the Habitation or Biology groups, has made him really angry before, that I know about. If you give him a reason to forgive you, he may welcome it. It can't hurt to try."

"I'm not certain I'm ready to forgive him yet. But, this has happened to me before, and I know it cannot come out well for me, no matter what I do."

"Well, you shouldn't apologize if you aren't sincere, but if you really want out of trouble, that seems the best way to go. If you wait too long, nothing you say will matter."

"You think about it while I fix your nose. Just lie back and relax."

Txumtsä'wll lays down and steels herself for the doctor's handling of her nose. Although the patient doesn't complain, there are a couple of loud pops and some grinding sounds as the doctor manipulates her nose and gets it put back into alignment again. The doctor packs the nostrils to hold the cartilage in place so it can heal. When she is finished, she helps her patient off the table and back into the treatment chair, and puts the respirator mask back on her.

The doctor walks over to Toruk, and asks softly "Sempul does know you two are here, doesn't he?"

"Yes, I asked him before I talked to her. He seemed happy that I suggested it. He made sure to say that we must return in time for the midday meal. Honestly, if he said no, I would have told her how to get here anyway. She was coughing all the time, and it was making me uncomfortable, that and the small-talk about the outside air. I hate to see people suffer, especially when help is so near. Maybe he could have brought her over here sooner, but he was wrapped up with the Maintenance crew. He and your patient needed some distance, anyway."

"Is that how her nose got injured again?"

"Yes, he brought her a bowl of water to drink. She wouldn't answer his question, and instead threw the bowl at him, soaking him. He was being conciliatory, and she rebuffed him. So, he hit her, hard, right in the face. Knocked her over backwards in her chair. I had my blindfold on, but heard it all. There were two seats between us, so I was close enough to hear clearly."

"Never saw that side of him before. Remind me to never make him that angry."

"Yes, I know not to do that, ever. Earlier this morning, he told me there are no guards here. Now I know he and his staff are military, or at least were trained by the military."

"Well, I'm not allowed to discuss that with settlers. But, it is safe to say that everyone here is either military or working on contract to the military. And, yes, we have all had military training. I'm about due for my annual refresher on weapons. Even medical staffers must pass their tests, or we're out."

"He seems a friendly and mild-mannered man, but with his military training, he can be a brute, especially when provoked. We will all do well to keep on his good side. So, how long would you keep her if we were not ordered to return at midday?"

"Well, the nose won't be healed for many days, but I wouldn't keep her here for that. I'd keep her on the respirator all day with that cough, though, but she will be well enough leaving at midday. She must drink lots of water or hot soup to keep from coughing this afternoon."

"So, she'll be alright if she stays until midday?"

"Yes, keep her drinking and out of trouble with Sempul, and she'll be alright. If I'm wrong, bring her back, but that shouldn't be necessary."

"That's good. Can she talk now, while she's on the respirator?"

"It will be difficult, but if she times her words with the equipment, she can have a very slow conversation."

"One last question. Don't answer if it could cause problems for you. Sempul told me that we settlers must be surgically altered to live outside. You said everything here is poisonous to us in our current bodies. But, it doesn't seem reasonable to me that everything can be replaced, practically all organs other than heart and brain. So, what must be changed, and how is that done?"

"You're right, answering that is a problem for me. That is Sempul's responsibility. Don't worry about that, though, it's much different than you think. And, there are some very important details still being worked out by the Biology group here. Sempul will tell you in his own time. After that, I'll be happy to go into the details with you."

"Fair enough. I haven't been here for a full day yet, and already know more than I should. That can wait. Thanks for being as open as you have been. If you need to do something else, I can stay with her until it's time to leave."

"Well, I'm not allowed to leave you settlers alone in the Medical dome. I do have some work to do on the terminal, so I will do that while you talk with her."

"Could you turn the lights down? I need to take my blindfold off. I have another demon to chase off, and I want to see her as I do that."

"Yes, I'll do that. Good luck with the demon. Thank you, Toruk, for bringing her in. It's good someone in the group is looking out for everyone else. If anyone ever needs medical care, you know how to find me." With that, the doctor leaves him, dims the lights, and sits down at the terminal in the back of the room.

Toruk removes his blindfold and eye pads, and rolls his chair as close to Txumtsä'wll as he can get. "The doctor says you can speak if you time your words around the action of the respirator. But, to make it easier for you, I'll talk to you, and you can shake your head, yes or no."

She looks at him, pats the seat cushion, and says through the mask "Sit with me."

He looks at the treatment chair, and sees that the arms can be unlatched and rotated out of the way. He moves the arms out of the way, and she slides over, giving him room. He sits down beside her, and puts his arm over her shoulders. She snuggles up, putting her head on his shoulder.

"I'm going to describe the steps that happened to me after I arrived on this moon. Shake your head yes if the same thing happened to you. Otherwise, shake your head no. Ready?"

She shakes her head yes.

"I arrive naked, blindfolded, and flat on my back on a cargo pad."

She nods yes.

"Someone helps me up into a wheelchair."

She nods yes.

"I'm covered with a sheet."

She nods yes.

"I'm handed a bowl of hot broth, and told to drink it right away."

She nods yes.

"I try to ask questions, but I'm told not to."

She nods yes.

"I'm pushed for what seems quite a long distance."

She nods yes.

"They stop pushing me, and tell me I have to finish up the broth."

She nods yes.

"They take the bowl and sheet, and tell me to lie down on the ground, and go to sleep. I am to keep my blindfold on, and not touch the plants around me on the ground."

She nods yes.

"The broth must have been drugged. I fall asleep right away, and have the most amazing dream ever."

This time she whimpers, but after a little pause, shakes her head yes.

"This dream is like my entire life played over again at high speed."

She nods yes.

"The mundane things, like school, fly past too quickly to understand."

She nods yes.

"Then the strongly emotional things were covered, much more slowly."

She drops her head down so low, her chin touches her chest. After a couple of deep breaths, she raises her head, and then nods yes.

"The painful times. I had many operations as a child, and relive the pain."

She nods yes, and then says "Horse threw me," pauses for the respirator, and finishes "broke arm and wrist."

"I saw funerals of family members, and a schoolmate who died in an accident."

She nods yes.

"Then my sexual ..."

She lets out a howl, so loud and so pained, he thinks she injured herself in some way. She buries her face in her hands, knocking off the respirator mask, and her whole body wracks with sobbing. The doctor comes running from the back of the room. He raises his hand, and waves the doctor to halt. She sees that they are sitting together, with him holding her against his chest as she wails. He mouths "The demon." She realizes what he has accomplished, and does not interrupt. She cups her hand over her mouth, signaling him to put the respirator mask back on her. He shakes his head yes, and the doctor slowly backs away.

She continues to cry uncontrollably, so he slides the mask on her forehead. She raises her hands and pulls it down over her mouth, and then covers her eyes with her hands again. He doesn't see a clock anywhere, and hopes they have enough time to let her cry herself out.

While she cries, he begins to think about his situation. When he was born, his parents were gratified to see that he had the right number of fingers and toes, and looked normal enough for a baby. However, he had many abnormalities that were not visible. He was a sickly child, and needed numerous medical procedures to keep him alive. These problems stunted his growth, and kept him from developing a normal musculature. While the other little boys played together outdoors, he was stuck in his bed, reading. He soon grew bored of children's stories, and looked for more interesting fare, particularly histories and biographies. Soon he gravitated to histories on simpler times, long before the time of the Great Scientists. Many of these texts were hard to access, he was too young for most of them, but he was determined and had plenty of time to find copies with less than foolproof security. Although his mind was developing quickly, his body languished from inactivity. Later on, whenever teams were formed in his physical education classes, he was always the last pick that nobody wanted. No amount of knowledge ever seemed to compensate for a lack of physical strength or size.

His interest in ancient civilizations did lead to him try archery. Holding an arrow in a drawn bow put him in touch with hunters that lived millions of years earlier, doing the identical thing he was doing. Few other physical activities have such ties to pre-historical times. He loved that connection, but he never could get the right equipment. Buying a bow is like buying a suit coat that fits properly. A bow with the right draw weight to match his lack of strength is way too small, essentially meant for a child. A bow with the right draw length to match his adult bones only comes in much higher draw weights, much more than what he could manage. He doesn't think the bows here will fit any better, giving him a serious handicap as a hunter. He will have to find a niche that matches his physical capabilities and also makes him attractive to potential mates.

He shakes his head when he realizes he has helped two women already during the very first morning on this moon. All through his adolescence and early adulthood, he couldn't get any positive attention from the opposite sex. One woman told him he was very nice and a good listener, but that apparently wasn't enough to start a relationship with him. He just doesn't have the physical characteristics or personality traits that attract women. So, he gave up on relationships and concentrated on his schooling and career. Much later, he met his wife. She had married a man she found handsome and exciting, but in time, he found his excitement with other women. She divorced him, and looked for a boring but reliable man. He always felt very lucky that they met. Eventually, they married, had two children, and had a good life together. His one trait that made him "unreliable" is his curiosity. His interest in history and ancient civilizations got him in trouble since early childhood, because he was always curious about the very topics that the government considers subversive. He thought that by being an otherwise good citizen, his researches wouldn't matter. Now he's here, and his wife and kids think he has been executed as a convicted subversive. He had a good life, and lost it looking for useless knowledge.

There are sixteen men and sixteen women in this batch of settlers, so the odds are even. He thinks that with his luck, there will be at least one lesbian couple, leaving him the odd man out again. He hopes that when these two women recover from their current shock, at least one of them might still be interested in him. His fear is that they both will hate him for witnessing them at their lowest points. He knows that living off the land in the wild is very demanding physically, and his body will keep him from being a good provider. He wishes now that he studied ancient textiles. With a little luck, maybe he and Seze could become the makers of loincloths. That is one job that doesn't sound so physically demanding. He gets depressed thinking about starting over again, and finally stops thinking. He cries just long enough for several tears to drop off his cheeks, and then it's over. His father never let him cry as a child, and now that his father is long dead, he has never been able to cry. He lets his mind go blank, and concentrates on her weeping.

She is still sobbing, but the pace has slowed considerably. The tension in her body lessens, and she falls asleep in his arms. He, too, gives up to his emotional exhaustion, and also falls asleep. A short while later, the doctor wakes them both. "I hate to wake you, you two look so serene sleeping together like this, but I have a midday meeting to attend also, and have to clean up this room before I leave. So, out you go." She turns off the respirator, and removes the mask from the woman. "You must drink lots of water. If they are serving hot broth or soup, eat as much of that as you can. That is the best for your throat now. Hot is better than cold, and more liquids are better than less." She looks to Toruk, and says "Thanks again for bringing her over. Keep out of bright sunlight as much as possible."

"I do want to check out the garden, and the planet and suns above, but I fear this meeting will take the rest of the daylight hours, and maybe all of the night, too."

"I'm sure Sempul will not let it drag on too long, at least not past the evening meal. He has lots to do behind the scenes. Good luck to both of you." The doctor escorts Toruk and Txumtsä'wll to the airlock. He shields his eyes with his hand as they walk out the airlock door.

As they stroll across the plaza, she looks at him and says "Thank you, Toruk, for showing me the way to the clinic. I feel much better after the treatments you and the doctor gave me this morning. I really needed a friend, and I appreciate you being here for me. Please, though, don't tell anyone what happened."

"I promise I will not tell any settler what happened in the clinic today. However, the doctor was there, and she heard you, so I suspect she will say something to Sempul and Sa'nok. It is reasonable to assume that will happen. I won't give them any details, but I expect they will ask me. I've spoken to you and one other, and all three of us have been upset by our dreams. My guess is that there are others, too. Maybe all thirty-two settlers have been affected. I promise not to divulge what happened this morning, but be prepared to discuss it with Sa'nok, even though you took a swing at her."

They laugh together as they reach the door into the Habitation building. He opens the door, and sees Sempul and Sa'nok standing in front of the door into the small meeting room that is now her office. He looks to Txumtsä'wll and says "Remember, hot is better than cold, and liquids are better than anything else. I'll catch up with you shortly." She smiles and leaves him, walking into the large meeting room, and he stops near the couple in charge.

Sempul asks "How did it go?"

"Very well. Sa'nok, I hope you are a first-rate psychiatrist, you have your work cut out for you."

"Hate to disappoint you, I'm a clinical psychologist. Worked mainly with soldiers having adjustment problems. What makes you say that?"

"Have you two slept beneath the sacred tree? Or, should I say, the torture tree?"

Sempul and Sa'nok look at each other with surprised looks. He looks at Toruk, and says softly "No one has ever said that about the sacred tree before. What's the problem? Everyone is supposed to feel good after sleeping under it. Didn't you?"

"Yes, I felt great when you cut me out of the filaments this morning. The dream ended on a high note. But, as the morning wore on, the painful things covered during the dream returned, pushing out the good feelings. Everyone has painful memories that are forgotten, and should stay forgotten, but the tree drags them out and makes you face them again, fresh as if it just happened. The two women I've helped this morning had repressed memories return that have really upset them. Seze gave no clues, but a childhood monster should not cause the problems she had. The animal trainer, I can't say her name, didn't give me any details, but my guess is that she was raped as a small child, most likely by someone from her family's church. The tree yanked that repressed memory out, and then after she was cut out of the filaments, she had to sit naked for two days with no one to help her after reliving her attack. No wonder she went after you, Sa'nok. It's clear that this approach is causing a lot of pain. Is that part of your plan?"

Sempul and Sa'nok both look stricken. Sempul recovers first. "No, we have too much to do in too little time. Making everyone hurt will only get into the way of building a new clan. Having everyone sleep under the tree as they arrive is supposed to fix a different problem, and now you may have identified an unexpected side-effect. Believe me, we did not intend to hurt any of you. If I did not have this meeting scheduled, I would visit the person who insisted we do this. He calls himself a 'xenobotanical psychiatrist' and is a member of the Biology team here."

"He's here, on this moon? If he's a psychiatrist, get him over here to clean up his mess."

"He's not interested in clinical work with people, only plants, so I doubt he would be much help. Let's get this meeting going, and get everyone's minds on something else. We'll look into this problem later. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We will have to reassess our plans in order to fix this properly."

"Thank you both for listening. By the way, the doctor told her her name means a plant that spits poison. She seemed very hurt by that. She also said she wishes you would have killed her. I have not talked much with the other twenty-nine settlers, but I think she is the closest to suicide."

"Sa'nok, talk to her right after this meeting. I'll cut it off mid-afternoon so you can see her and be done before the evening meal. Toruk, thanks again. Better hit the bathroom, you have a long sit coming."

Toruk has not had to relieve himself since arriving on this moon, but now the need can no longer be ignored. He has not used the bathroom here, nor has he had to remove his groin strap. He quickly strides to the bathroom, tugging on the knot in his telem.


	6. Chapter 6: Introductions

**Pandora: Genesis**

I gratefully acknowledge one of the foremost creative geniuses of our times, James Cameron, for conceiving the lush moon Pandora and the "noble savages," the Na'vi, that inhabit it. This story uses the language and setting he created for his movie, Avatar. I have not received any money for my work based on Avatar. If I could get paid by the hour for these stories, I would retire and spend all my time dancing and writing in comfort.

This story contains all original characters and situations, giving my thoughts on how the moon Pandora became the home of the Na'vi as seen in the movie.

I am just learning the Na'vi language, and cannot claim the lesson below is completely correct. If you know the language and see a mistake, please let me know and I'll fix it, if I can. (E.g., I know of no way to represent an ejective, also called a plosive, in a way that is understandable to those not familiar with the concept, so I use -pop- below. Suggestions are welcome.) Thanks to learnnavi . org, naviteri . org, navilessons . podomatic . com, and projectngaynume . com for the resources defining and teaching the Na'vi language. Irayo.

I have made a drawing of the complex on Pandora where this clan lives before moving into Hometree. This drawing is on my Facebook page, just search for Tisrusewa Karyu (note the diacritical marks are missing as they are not accepted by Facebook).

**Chapter Six: Introductions**

Toruk strides through the sleeping room towards the bathroom. Since he spent his only night on this moon sleeping under the sacred tree, he has not selected a bed yet. He is surprised to see thirty-two beds lined up in a neat line nearest the bathroom, leaving a huge empty space behind them. Clearly, this room is designed to hold hundreds of beds. The bathroom is a total shock. He is expecting the usual separate facilities for men and women, but that is not the case. Instead, he walks into the most bizarre bathroom he has ever seen. It is not a separate room, but occupies the area along one wall of the sleeping room. The back wall holds a single metal sink stretching its entire length, more like a wide gutter, with water spouts packed closely together above it. There are no mirrors anywhere, just a number of small shelves, some holding baskets of leaves, above the water spouts. One end of the room has what looks like a grove of metal trees, laid out in a four by eight grid. Each "tree" has a canopy of eight shower heads. The other end has sixteen rows of toilets, eight rows back to back, with sixteen toilets in each row, the most toilets he has seen in any one place. There are no partitions anywhere, everything is freestanding and visible. Between the grove of shower stands and the sea of toilets is a low wall surrounding a shallow pool of water. At first, he thinks it is a huge urinal. He glances into the pool and sees that it is a reflecting pool, the replacement for the missing mirrors. He is not certain that this pool should be used for a urinal, so he strides to the nearest toilet and relieves himself. At first, he gets a sharp burning sensation, and remembers that his catheter was removed last night, and this is his first time urinating since then. Fortunately, the pain quickly subsides, and he sees no blood in the toilet. He hopes that the decontamination effects are completely over now. While he struggles to get his groin strap back on tight, hunter style, the toilet flushes automatically. That's good, because there are no visible controls to flush it. He sees that the toilets nearest the pool have baskets of leaves sitting on the floor, but most toilets have no baskets. Those leaves must be the cleaning leaves Sempul mentioned earlier this morning. Looking towards the shower stands, he see a couple of large baskets holding huge leaves. Those must be the drying leaves, the over-sized versions of those in the baskets above the sink. He goes to the sink to a water spout near a basket of leaves, and finds a single push button on it to control the water. No soap or other cleaning agents are visible. After rubbing his hands under the steam of water, he grabs some leaves, and is surprised at how well they work. He thought they would crumble, with the pieces sticking to his skin, but they are pliable and absorbent enough to work well. He finds a large empty basket sitting on the floor, and throws the used leaves into it. He can't wait to get to the introductory meeting, and see what Sempul has to say. He strides back to the large meeting room.

As he walks to the front of this large, practically empty meeting room, he sees it has been rearranged for this meeting. The eight tables for the settlers have been moved back a short distance, with a gap between each table wide enough to walk through. Only one table is in front of them, and is centered now. There are three chairs behind the table, facing the settlers. Sempul and Sa'nok are standing behind these chairs, talking with a third balding man he has never seen before, also dressed in a loincloth. The camera on a stand is centered, and is between the front table and the tables for the settlers. No food is on the back tables as was the case for breakfast, but has been moved to two tables just behind the tables for the settlers. The same two young staffers in loincloths from earlier are "guarding" the food tables, one on each side. The settlers are standing behind the food tables, waiting for the staffers to let them at the food. As Toruk joins them, Sempul speaks over the crowd to him, "Toruk, is anyone else back there?"

"No, Sempul. I didn't see anyone in that very unusual bathroom or sleeping room." A number of settlers laugh or mumble their comments on the unique facilities.

"Good, let's get started. I have a new staffer up front today, our linguist. You may call him Karyu. My staffers by the food are going to check you out, to see if you are wearing your groin strap hunter style. Ladies, line up in front of my woman staffer. You may call her Tsmuke. Gentlemen, line up in front of my man staffer. You may call him Tsmukan. After you are checked out, go through the line and get your meal. This is the introductory meeting, so when you get through the line, take the next place at the tables. I want you to alternate, man, woman, man, woman, and so forth. My hope is you get to sit next to two settlers you have not met before now. Introduce yourself to you neighbors, and then take your seat. After everyone is seated and gets some time for eating and talking, I'll begin the meeting." Sempul, Sa'nok, and Karyu walk to the food table and assemble their meals.

As Toruk is the last male settler to enter the room, he takes his place at the end of the line of men. He does not pay much attention to the women, as they are huddled around the woman staffer. Some men need to readjust their straps, but most, including Toruk, have their straps on hunter style.

The meal is an interesting hodge-podge of foodstuffs. There are several varieties each of nuts, fruits, vegetables, and meats. Some vegetables and meats are grilled, and the rest are raw and sliced thin. Some edible leafs are available, along with a stack of clay bowls. The only drink is a pot of tepid water. A large pot of meat broth is at the far end, sitting on a gas burner, and is boiling softly. Sa'nok suggests placing pieces of raw vegetables and meats in a bowl, and ladling the hot broth over the pieces, cooking them lightly. Toruk remembers his diarrhea while in the prison on his home planet, just several days ago, and puts only grilled meat and vegetables in his bowl, and covers the pieces in broth. He looks over the table, wishing some bread or crackers is available, and realizes he has seen no items made of grains or cereals in the short time he's been here. He wonders about this curious omission. There are no cups, so he fills another bowl with water. There are no eating utensils either, so he grabs some cleaning leaves for use after eating with his fingers. When he takes his place, he is surprised to see that he is seated between Seze and Txumtsä'wll at the far end of the tables for the settlers.

"Seze, this is Txumtsä'wll, the horse trainer we saw in action this morning. Txumtsä'wll, I hope I'm saying that correctly, this is Seze, an archeologist I knew from my previous life. She taught at a local college and wrote some interesting papers on ancient weapons. You can call me your knight errant, as you two are the damsels in distress I rescued this morning." The two women look at him with strange looks, because his words are obscure, and then politely nod at each other. With that, they take their seats and begin eating.

Toruk tries to get a conversation going among himself and the two women sitting beside him, but they are so different, he just can't find any common ground to discuss. Seze is very academic and full of knowledge, and is prim and proper in most respects. Txumtsä'wll has little use for education and knowledge, and never thinks twice about jumping into dirty messes. He even tries discussing their new wardrobes, knowing that neither was happy with their outfits, particularly their tops, but couldn't get a sustained discussion going. It seems neither woman really wants to say anything around the other. Toruk is greatly relieved when Sempul rises.

As Sempul stands and looks as if he is about to speak, Txumtsä'wll jumps up, and says loudly "Sempul, may I address the clan?"

Sempul is somewhat taken aback, but answers, "Yes, you may. But I will cut you off if I don't like what you are saying."

"What I am about to say should not be a problem for anyone." She walks up to the camera stand, between the tables with the settlers and the front table with Karyu, Sempul, and Sa'nok. She turns towards the settlers, and speaks with a softer voice. "I thought about doing this privately, but after Sempul's first lesson this morning, it seems best to say this to everyone." She walks around the end of the table so she can face both Sa'nok and the settlers, and pauses while taking a deep breath. "Sa'nok, I apologize for trying to hit you this morning. It was wrong and stupid of me. Please forgive me." Sa'nok is looking at her wide-eyed, and can only nod. She walks around the front of the table to the other end so she can stand looking at Sempul and the settlers. "Sempul, I apologize for the nasty things I said to you and Sa'nok this morning. I should not have said anything, and should have given up right away. Please forgive me." Sempul is also speechless, and also nods to her. Looking to the settlers, she says "I also apologize to the two women who were with me this morning. They had no idea what I was about to do, and just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Sempul, you have come down hard on them, and they really are not deserving of it. I am the only one deserving your wrath. Please forgive them. I hope the two women can also forgive me for getting them into trouble." She walks back to the camera stand, and looks to the settlers. "I apologize to the entire clan for the troubles I have caused, resulting in the cleaning of the entire sleeping room and bathroom. I promise to behave and not cause such trouble again. Please forgive me. Finally, I want to thank Toruk for helping me this morning, and talking some sense into me. I thank all of you for your time and attention." She walks back to her chair and sits down, shaking, stifling her tears. Some of the settlers clap and cheer for her. Toruk, sitting, reaches around her, and gives her a hug, eliciting another odd look and then a frown from Seze.

Sempul walks towards her, and says "This is a very pleasant surprise. What made you so unhappy early this morning?"

"When I first arrived here, I was given the drugged broth, fell asleep on the ground, and had the most detailed dream of my life. Everything I saw in that dream I remembered from before in my life, except for the most horrible part, being raped by the chief minister of my family's church when I was little. I don't remember that ever happening. I felt great when I first woke up, but that horrible dream kept eating at me. I was naked and surrounded by strangers, and had no one to discuss it with. After two days, my anger built up until I just snapped. I think that bad event really did happen, but I was never supposed to remember it again."

While Txumtsä'wll is talking, Sa'nok rises and walks over to Sempul. When Txumtsä'wll finishes, Sa'nok speaks to her in a soft manner, but loud enough to be heard by all. "Thank you for sharing that with the clan. I don't think Sempul expected an answer like you gave when he asked that question. After the meeting today, you and I must get together and talk more about it. Maybe in time, you will find real peace here, once you come to terms with what happened to you as a child." Sempul goes to the box in the corner, left over from the morning, and digs around in it. Sa'nok walks to the camera stand, and turns to face the settlers. "Raise your hand if your first dream here has been causing you problems." Most of the women raise their hands, but only a couple of men raise theirs. "Let me rephrase that question. How many of you had events in your first dream that you had forgotten, and wish had stayed forgotten?" This time, almost all settlers raised their hands.

Sempul joins Sa'nok by the stand, and says "You made that first dream for a very good reason, but we must cover much more ground until we can discuss it properly. I apologize to all of you who have been hurt by that dream. It was not intended to make anyone suffer. Getting a permanent settlement established here has been very difficult. Many mistakes have been made already, and I'm sure more mistakes will be made in the future. Maybe this first dream was a mistake, even though there is a good reason for it. We must work hard to get to the point where you understand what we are about, so we can work together to avoid more mistakes. Let's table the discussion about the first dream, and move on. Sa'nok will talk to each of you over the next few days. Be honest with her and yourself, and tell her about your feelings and any events from that first dream that have affected you. Before I start the introductory meeting, I want Txumtsä'wll to come forward."

She stands up, and joins Sempul and Sa'nok by the camera stand.

"What you just did took much courage, especially for someone with as little experience with apologizing as I suspect you have." She smiles and nods her head yes. "The txumtsä'wll plant spits poison, and that seemed appropriate after what you said this morning. Now that you have apologized, and I have accepted those apologies directed to me, I now change your name to one more appropriate for your role in the clan, as I see it." He takes the pad out of her leather holder and slides in a new pad. "You are now called Pa'liwll, for the pitcher plant that provides nectar to the pa'li that are like huge, six-legged horses. As you said earlier today, everyone here was picked for a reason. We need you to figure out how to take care of the pa'li, and how to ride and train them, and then teach us. There is another animal here, the ikran, that we need to capture and train, and maybe you can help with that also. Thank you for your apology, Pa'liwll." Sempul walks to the box and throws the Txumtsä'wll pad into it, and then returns to the center chair. "Any other questions before we begin?"

Loreyu, the woman who organized the settlers earlier in the morning, says "Sempul, my favorite color for clothing is red, but you said that color is reserved for the couple that runs the clan. Why aren't you and Sa'nok wearing red?"

"That is an excellent question, Loreyu. We are the parents of the clan, not the leaders of the clan. In the future, one of the men will become the obvious choice for olo'eyktan, that is, clan leader, and one of the women will become the obvious choice for tsahik, that is, spiritual leader. These two will become mates, and get the red clothes. We have much to discuss before we get to that point, though. What is interesting is that you, Loreyu, would make a good clan leader, and Toruk would make a good tsahik. We may have to reconsider the gender roles. However, we have much time until that decision must be made. Any more questions?"

Toruk speaks up. "I have many questions, but have one simple one now. There is no bread on the food line, now or at breakfast this morning. Why is that?"

"Another excellent question. Thank you, Toruk, for giving me an easy question. All meals here are based on what is available on this moon. There are no cereal grains here, so there is no bread, pasta, porridge, or other foods made from grains. That may be disappointing to some of you, but in time you will find plenty of variety here. Any more questions?" Sempul looks down the row of faces, and everyone seems ready to begin.

"Good, let's get started. Everyone, you may continue eating, but pay attention now. You will be repeating new words from the language you must learn quickly." Sempul looks at the settlers again, and waits for everyone to look at him.

"Rutxe, tivìng mikyun, ma frapo." Everyone looks at Sempul with questioning or amusing faces. "From now on, I will start all meetings with these words. What did I say? Let's break it down. Rutxe means please. Everyone, say rue-T-pop-AY."

The settlers all say the first syllable acceptably, but break down with the second.

"That's a good start. I struggle with the second syllable, too. Karyu will have to work on that with you. The next word is tricky. Tivìng comes from the word tìng that means give. Putting the extra sounds in makes it a command. Everyone, say tee-VING."

The settlers say this word with little trouble.

"Good. Now the next word is mikyun that means ear. Saying 'give ear' means listen. Why we're not saying 'give ears' is a mystery to me, we all have two ears, but Karyu tells me this way is correct. Everyone, say MEEK-yun."

As before, the settlers say this word with little trouble.

"Now, the next word is simple to say, but hard to explain. The word ma is used to address specific persons, at least that's how I think of it. Karyu can straighten that out later if I have it wrong. Say MA."

The settlers have no trouble repeating this word.

"Finally, the last word is frapo, and means everyone. By saying ma frapo, that means everyone here in this room, instead of everyone in this universe. Say FRA-po."

Again this word is repeated by the settlers without problem.

"So repeat the whole sentence with me." Together they repeat the sentence, and do well except for stumbling on the second syllable. "Rue-T-pop-AY tee-VING MEEK-yun MA FRA-po. That means 'Please listen, everyone.' Now to start the introductions. As many of you know, my name here is Sempul, and that means father. Everyone, say SEM-pull."

The settlers say his name with little trouble.

"Now, my wife is Sa'nok, and that means mother. Her name is tricky, in that you must stop between the two syllables. Everyone, say SAW nock, and stop between the syllables."

The settlers say her name, and several hurry through without stopping, and others pause way too long.

"Sitting beside me is Karyu, and that means teacher. Sounds like he must work with you on that stop between the syllables in sa'nok. Every morning, after the first meal, he will be teaching you the language you must speak here. He has a tough job, because he is teaching you how to speak the language, but not how to read or write the language. Your clan must not read or write this language, ever. Say CAR-you."

The settlers say the name of their language instructor with little trouble.

"Earlier, I told you to call my staffers Tsmukan and Tsmuke. These names mean brother and sister. The word for sibling is tsmuk. You can hear that gender is added to the word tsmuk by adding an extra sound on the end. Everyone, say TSMUK, TSMU-khan, and TSMU-kay."

The settlers repeat these words with much difficulty at the beginning, but get the endings straight.

"Karyu will also have to work on those words. Saying the beginning sounds together is very difficult for beginners." Sempul sits down in his chair. "Now, to help you learn more words, all of you have been given names of living things on this moon. You will use these names until you pick a more suitable name. That will be a long time from now, but we'll get into that later. I have passed out pictures of plants to all women, and animals to all men. Karyu has recorded the correct pronunciations of these items. You see between us the camera stand. I will call out your name, and you will come forward and get your picture taken." A groan comes up from the settlers, mainly the women. "I know, all of you lost your hair during decontamination on your way here. We will have another picture taking party in the future, when your hair grows back. But, I need your pictures today, and you are all bald, so there is no reason to be unhappy. On the front wall, your face and name pictures will be projected along with everyone else's. If you walk up and touch a picture, the recording of the name will be heard, pronounced correctly. Everyone should spend time here learning these names. When we get further along, we'll see videos for each of these plants and animals in action. When we get out into the jungle, you will get to see these plants and animals in their natural habitat. Of course, some are very dangerous, so learning about them now can save your life. Let's begin with the pictures." One by one, Sempul calls out the names of plants, and then animals, until all thirty-two settlers have been called. They walk to the camera stand and get their picture taken. Eventually, the entire front wall is filled with the images of the settlers and their namesakes.

Sempul stands again, and looks to the settlers. "We will take a short break now. Please get more food or drink, if you want more, or use the bathroom. We will reconvene shortly and discuss the preliminary topics I'm required to cover with you." With that, the introductions are complete.


	7. Chapter 7: Subversives

**Pandora: Genesis**

I gratefully acknowledge one of the foremost creative geniuses of our times, James Cameron, for conceiving the lush moon Pandora and the "noble savages," the Na'vi, that inhabit it. This story uses the setting and language he created for his movie, Avatar. I have not received any money for my work based on Avatar. If I could get paid by the hour for these stories, I would retire and spend all my time dancing and writing in comfort.

This story contains all original characters and situations, giving my thoughts on how the moon Pandora became the home of the Na'vi as seen in the movie.

**Chapter Seven: Subversives**

As the break begins, Loreyu and a male settler walk to the end table.

"I thought I better introduce myself to my future husband!" Loreyu laughs as she stops in front of Toruk. "I'm called Loreyu, and was a history teacher in my previous life. Got my leadership skills by herding teenagers every day. With me is my former pupil, Palulukan." She looks up at the large man beside her. "That is how your new name is pronounced?"

He looks down at her. "I think so. I ran a warehouse, but love to hunt and fish. I'm the outdoors type. Also like to read military history, something I learned from my favorite teacher. Guess that got me here."

"Yes, I'm sorry, I always said to look beyond the standard texts. That is not the best advice, I realize now, but I'll never get to teach a better way now." They look back at Toruk.

"Teaching teenagers is a tough job. I like history and military history, too. This place may be paradise for outdoors types like you, which I'm not. I'm called Toruk, and was a middle manager in a tech firm. Did mostly program management, meaning I directed the building of systems for customers. Just now was the first I heard about being good material for a tsahìk. Never would have guessed it, especially since I'm not very spiritual. I've been wondering what I could do here. Got here late last night, and have not had much time to think about it. Clearly, I'm the smallest man here on a world where size and strength are important. I did help the doctor with these two women. If anyone is hurt or sick or needs to talk to someone other than Sa'nok, send them to me. To my left is Seze, a professor of archeology I knew in my old life and an expert in ancient weapons, which are probably modern weapons on this moon. To my right is the freshly named Pa'liwll, the animal trainer. She is the celebrity here today." They all laugh at this unlikely description of her.

"Well, we're on our way to the food tables for refills. Let's join up after today's meeting and get acquainted."

"We need refills too. Pa'liwll needs more hot broth, on doctor's orders." She simply nods. "I haven't seen the garden yet. Let's meet out there and talk while we walk. Pa'liwll already has a date with Sa'nok, but Seze may join us if you don't mind."

Seze says "I should check in with the doctor first, but I'll catch up with you in the garden after that."

Loreyu says "Yes, ladies, please join us when you can. The garden is not that big, so just look for us. When the last meal is served, we'll come back here to eat." They stand and walk together to the food tables to get their refills.

The settlers take their seats as Sempul says "Rutxe, tivìng mikyun, ma frapo." He pauses as everyone gets situated and quiets down. "Now that introductions have been made, we must discuss the preliminary topics I'm required to cover with you. As you may have already guessed, everything here is recorded, and the videos are reviewed by my superiors, both to improve the process of establishing settlements, and also to evaluate the performance of me and my staffers." He paces while he briefly pauses again to collect his thoughts.

"This morning, you learned your first lesson. Everyone, say it."

Haltingly, some of the settlers say "The problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan."

"You did much better this morning. Say it again, together this time."

The group says, more forcefully and more in unison, "The problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan."

"That's getting better, but say it like you mean it."

The group practically yells "The problem of any individual in the clan is a problem for the entire clan."

"Good. We'll keep repeating this lesson until everyone gets it right, just like we'll keep checking your groin straps for hunter style. As I explained this morning, you have been ripped from your previous lives and sent out here because you are all convicted subversives. Your old lives are over. You must get over that loss so you can move forward." He pauses to let this idea sink in again.

"Your presence here is a direct result of those ancient historic events from two million standard years ago, the Time of the Great Scientists and the Great Awakening. Of course, your own actions have much more to do with you being here now, because you are convicted subversives. How did that happen?"

He walks down the row of settlers, looking into their eyes. Several keep eye contact, but most that meet his gaze look away. "All of you have been imprisoned for many days, so you have had plenty of time to think about this. But, most civilians don't understand how they get into this mess. So, let's talk about that first. The government has a database with details on everyone born in our civilization for the last two million years. Each person has a scorecard that tracks everything they have ever done. One of those scores is called your subversive score. When that score gets above a certain threshold, you are arrested as a subversive. So what goes into that score?"

Sempul returns to the center of the room and faces the settlers. "The simple answer is the government counts everything it doesn't like. Do you cost the government a lot of time and money? Toruk was a sickly child, and needed much medical care. That counted against his score. Palulukan and Pa'liwll have bad habits of getting drunk on weekends and picking fights, causing the police to get called many times. That counted against their scores. Loreyu spent all of her time in school taking care of her students, and did not take care of the weeds and trash in the yard around her house. Her picky neighbors called code enforcement all the time, and that counted against her score. But, that was not as serious as the fact that many of her students have high subversive scores. Your score goes up if many of your friends or acquaintances have higher than average scores. Get the picture? Notice that none of these are criminal violations, because criminals get handled differently and rarely become subversives. Criminals have been used for settlers, but they cause too many problems. They are not very cooperative, and everyone must be cooperative in the settlement we are making here."

"What really gets you in trouble is saying things that disagree with official government positions. Even if you do not publish dissenting views, just researching them raises your score. How does that work? As you know, each baby born in our civilization gets a cerebral implant. I got to witness placing an implant into a baby during my training, it's really amazing. As soon as you are born and the doctor decides you are medically stable, your head is put into a stereotaxis to keep it steady. A neurologist examines your brain to find the right place for the implant. The military is called, given the coordinates, and the same bubble technology that brought you here is used to place an implant into the middle of your brain. First they bubble in a little hollow ball, about the quarter the size of a brain cell. Compressed gas is bubbled into it to blow it up and push everything out of the way. Then, the tricky part. They bubble out the ball, and immediately bubble the implant into the cavity before it collapses. The implant sends out little nanobots on light fibers to plug into the necessary junctions. It cannot be cut out without killing you. Each implant contains an unique number that is broadcast whenever you must be identified. That way there is no question who you are. You cannot say you are someone else, because your implant always identifies you correctly. If your implant determines it cannot work correctly, it sends out a maintenance signal. You must go to the hospital and have it replaced immediately. If you don't, the police will track you down and see to it that it gets replaced, and that also counts against you, big time."

"In the early days of implants, their only function was identification and authentication. Over time, as computers got much more powerful, and the brain became better understood, implants were made to do more. Your implants process everything you see and hear, and report on things that could be proscribed. For example, Toruk here wrote down a still active account owned by a dead person, its address and password on a sheet of toilet paper while in prison. His implant reported it. He lost that paper in the prison infirmary just before he left. The doctor found it, and read it. The doctor's implant reported it. The doctor had the good sense to destroy it just after he figured out what it was. The investigative system looked into that account, and found many proscribed texts and images, things Toruk collected from other subversives. Needless to say, that account is empty now. If anyone ever logs into that account, it will count against their subversive score. So far, no one has used that account, so it looks like it was his personal stash. In the years I've been accessing the records of subversives, Toruk holds the record as being the youngest to make the subversive watch list, when he was nine years old. Using a stolen account is his worst offense, but he was already convicted and on his way here when it came to light, so no further legal action was taken."

"I was going to give that paper to my lawyer to see if it would help me get out of prison, but I was bubbled away before I could see him again."

"Yes, we'll talk more about this later, but since the Great Awakening, all settlements are made with convicted subversives. All Habitation Directors like myself are on the look-out for subversives with special skills, like all of you. Because of the importance and problems with settling this moon, I have a pretty high priority, and "out-bid" all other requests for you. I had to take all of you as quickly as I could arrange it, or risk losing you to another director with a higher priority. Sorry you didn't get to talk with your lawyer, but it would not have helped your case anyway." Toruk nods in response.

"So, now that we have discussed implants, we have to discuss percoms. As you grew up, your parents gave you personal communications devices, percoms for short. You used these at school to access your texts and other class work. You use them at home and at work, for routine tasks, serious legal matters, paying bills, communicating with others, and sports and entertainment. Ever since the earliest days of networked computers, everything you do is tracked. There are centralized databases that collect all of this tracking data, called logs, and process them. Everything you do on your percom changes your scores. There are government agencies that determine which actions are good and which are bad. These rules get programmed in, and every living person gets their scores updated after the rules get updated. When your subversive score crosses the violation threshold, the closest police station gets a text ordering your arrest. Since all of your transgressions are listed in the text, an investigation and trial are rather useless. You can't claim someone else did it, because your cerebral implant verified it was you using the percom to access or create the proscribed data. A little secret I can give you now is that the implant assumes everything done on a percom is being logged, and so the implant ignores most of what you do on a percom. Every time your percom needs your identity, it queries your implant, and your implant records what you're seeing on your percomm that needs your identity. These cross-logging synchronization points provide the chain of non-repudiation that prove what you are doing at all times on any percom, not just your own."

"So, it's unfortunate that you are here. Your subversive activities resulted in you being here. Over the next few days, you get to choose whether to make the most of your life, and help build a new civilization here, or choose to give up and die. My hope is that all of you decide to move forward. Everyone here needs your skills to survive, so even if you would rather die, you are needed by all your fellow settlers. The skills of each individual is needed by the entire clan. Our civilization says some skills are more important than others. That is no longer true for your clan. Without your skills, everyone else may die. The first settlement here failed because everyone in it died from illness or predators. The second settlement was practically wiped out by predators. Everyone dying has already happened, so that is not an idle threat. You need each other, all day, every day."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> The above text was written over a year ago. Wish I published it then, because with the revelations from Edward Snowden, the former NSA system administrator, this story now seems more science fact than science fiction.

My lack of readers discouraged me from working this story any further. I really prefer working with my own characters, but it is clear what you, my audience, wants, and now I'm concentrating on the characters from the film in The End of an Era and Pandora: The Final Solution.

Here is the "raw" text, notes really, left over in my computer to give you a little hint of where this story is heading. Maybe I'll return to this story someday, at which time I'll complete this chapter and expand upon the following. Enjoy!

You know about the time of the Great Scientists. One scientist discovered the concept of space-time. Once that was understood, many groups tried to build a device to bend space-time. Such a device would revolutionize travel, as the speed of light would no longer be a hard limit. Only when another scientist decides that bending our universe takes too much energy to be practical does he try making an empty universe first. That was the key breakthrough. These empty universes are what we call bubbles today. When you bubble from home to work, you leave this universe for a very small and empty universe, and then it dumps you back into this universe at your destination, and does it instantaneously no matter how far you have traveled.

Normally, the biology group would be gone by now. When the Great Awakening led to making settlements throughout the galaxies in our cluster, the decision was made to place different species in each settlement. So, each settler has his or her brain contents copied into a new body for the species slated for a particular world. The technology to do that has existed for millenia. Our biology group has developed a new technology, biological as opposed to electromechanical, to do this transfer. They have also developed many new species designed to live here, breathing the atmosphere and eating the plants and animals, all poisonous to most living creatures from anywhere else.

The palulukan chases him through the forest. By running against trees and bushes, he can slow it down just enough that it cannot catch him. But he sees that such vegetation disappears just ahead. He is approaching a cliff. He sees a thick vine on the ground that drops over the edge. He jumps at the vine and drops down below the edge. The palulukan slows to avoid flying over the edge, but it still smells him and does not give up the chase. He drops down the vine, and sees a large cave in the face of the cliff. The palulukan is swiping at him over the edge. Part of the vine branches into the cave, and he climbs onto that branch to escape the claws and murderous gaze of the palulukan. The cave has an unusual musty odor, caused in part by droppings that cover the floor. He follows the vine far enough into the cave that he must wait for his eyes to adjust to the dark. Looking down, he is shocked to see he is directly over the largest bird-like creature he has ever seen. Even in the dim light, he can see it is red and orange, streaked through with black and purple. A toruk, its head towards the back of the cave. Looking that way, he can see another toruk, facing outwards, sitting on a nest with four small heads just peeking out from under its folded wings. Looking back, he is shocked to see the head of the palulukan peering into the gloom of the cave. He is between the two most dangerous predators known to the Na'vi, and nowhere to escape. When the toruk parents wake, they will go mad with two uninvited creatures so near their young. With no escape route visible, and death almost a certainty, a desperate plan comes to mind. He wraps his tail around the vine and lets himself down, resting the tops of his feet on the top of the vine to hold his weight. Holding his queue in one hand, he straightens out so his head almost touches the neural whip of the toruk. Looking down, he jams the end of his queue into the neural whip. Without touching or waking the toruk, he has made the bond with the beast. He sends the image of the palulukan looking into the cave to the toruk. The toruk twists around in place. The sudden move startles him, and he drops onto the back of the toruk. He grabs hold of the neural whips with both hands. The toruk is aware of the weight on his back, but the sight of the palulukan in the entrance of the cave holding his family enrages him. He sends the message to attack the palulukan, knowing that the toruk really needs no urging, but hopes the supportive command will make the toruk see him as an ally.


End file.
